Krampus: Origins
by duchessofbooks
Summary: My take on the Krampus legend. Set in Ancient Germanic times, Ishild is determined to find the creature that is haunting her village. By accident, she comes upon the creature, only he is different from the stories she heard of him. She is determined to protect him from the villagers, but at what cost?
1. Prologue

**Krampus: Origins**

 ***I have made this story back in 2015. I finally got to see the film in December of 2016. While I did enjoy it, it really didn't touch base on the origin of the Christmas demon, which is completely fine. I decided to create this story as I do like the Krampus legend and I do hope everyone enjoys this!***

 **Prologue**

 _Baemi Tribe (pre-Austria), circa Early 10th Century_

Summer fell upon the community of Baemi. The grass was a bright emerald green and the setting sun's rays streaked across the sky.

Ishild, a young girl of six with blonde hair and dazzling eyes hides under a table in the gathering hall. "Ishild? Where are you?!" she heard her mother shout.

"Rosmunda, would you please keep it down," her father said and adds, "She might be in already. You know she loves story nights."

Ishild's father was the advisor to the Baemi's chief and he and his family were granted the highest rank in the tribe.

Ishild loved to hear stories about far-away lands and of creatures that were not human. She was always excited for story nights.

"Oh, there you are!" Rosmunda exclaimed and takes her daughter into her arms.

"When will everyone get here? I want to hear Oda's story!" Ishild demands, but her mother chuckles.

"Please be patient darling, Oda is an old lady," Rosmunda replies, but Ishild frowns.

Finally, the gathering hall began to fill up with families and some men prepare a bon fire. A hole in the roof provided air and allowed the sparks to get out.

Then, a trio of bone flutes began to play and the families take a seat around the bon fire. An old woman with white hair and emerald green eyes was brought in.

Oda was the local storyteller of the tribe and she was famous within the community for her tales. Oda walks slowly around the bon fire and begins to chant.

Ishild watches Oda with delight and the old lady begins to tell a story.

"A long time ago, there lived a man and a woman. They lived in peace, but the man desired a child.

"The woman, who was foolish and vain, did not want a child. However, she submitted to her husband's wishes and was soon with child.

"The woman did not like to be with child, therefore she taunted God by proclaiming she would rather have the Devil's child. If only she knew of the consequences that followed.

"The child was born, but it was of this world. It had the cloven hooves of the Devil, the horns of a goat, and its body was covered with black hair.

"Such a horror the woman gave birth to and the man takes the child away to the wilderness to die. Only it didn't die, the dwarves of the wood discover the child and raise it as their own.

"The creature now hunts the meadows in the bleak of winter in search of food. Anyone who dares cross its path will meet an unfortunate fate," Oda said to everyone.

The whole hall was hushed by this story and Oda then stares at Ishild. She places a hand on the child's head.

"I warn you child, beware of this creature, you might be its next meal," Oda teased and the crowd laughs.

"Crazy old lady," Ishild's father said, but Rosmunda scolds her husband.

"Your father doesn't believe in legends," she said to her daughter. The families then leave the gathering hall and return to their homes.

Darkness fell and the tribe's residents turn in for the night. Ishild was tucked into bed, but she didn't fall asleep. Instead, she goes to the window and stares at the starry sky.

The cluster of stars glowed bright and Ishild looks out on the village. Lanterns were lit, including those of the night guards.

Ishild looks around, seeing that no one was patrolling around her house. She then puts on her cloak and climbs out of the window.

She runs toward the dark meadow just beyond the village. Ishild was curious if the creature Oda had told her about was around there, even if it wasn't winter.

She was careful not to get caught by the guards. She had done it before and the trick was to be quiet as a mouse.

Ishild made it to the meadow, it was not dark thanks to the glowing moon. She looks around, but all she could see were flocks of sheep.

She waits patiently for the creature to show up, but nothing appeared. The moon then hides behind some clouds, making it pitch-black. Ishild pants hard and curls up in a ball.

The clouds move away and the moon lit up the night. Ishild looks at the flocks of sheep, they were still there.

Ishild was disappointed and she decided to return home.

Only when she turns around, she notices a wolf that was close by. Ishild gasps and turns to run. The wolf howls and gives chase.

"HELP! HELP!" Ishild cries out and continues to run.

The wolf, however, was caught by something and it was dragged into the darkness.

Ishild continues to cry out and the guards hear her. "Easy child, what is it?" one of them asks.

"A wolf! A wolf is chasing me!" Ishild cries out and a guard takes her into his arms. The others prepared themselves to fight against the wolf, only it didn't appear.

"I swear, a wolf was chasing me," Ishild said, but the men look around the place. They came back and shake their heads.

"Ishild!" Rosmunda shrieks and she and her husband arrive. "What are you doing out here? You know it's dangerous!" Rosmunda shouts at her daughter.

"I'm sorry Mother," Ishild replies.

The family leaves the guards and they resumed their duties. Rosmunda tucks her daughter into bed, "Now go to sleep, no strolling around after dark. You were just chased by a wolf," she said. Ishild nods and her mother leaves her room.

Ishild looks up at the ceiling, but she decides to take a peek out the window, again. She stares up at the stars, they shined so bright that they looked like jewels to Ishild. She then closes the window and goes to sleep.

In the darkness of the forest, the wolf is hoisted onto a figure's back. The creature looks at the lights of the village, but it turns around and disappears.

* * *

 **From the author: What do you think? Again, this is just a fictitious approach to the Alpine legend of Krampus.**

 **Please leave reviews!**


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

 _10 years later_

The Alpine landscape had changed with the seasons; snow blanketed the mountains, meadows, and the hills and the people of the Baemi tribe were cuddled in their fur coats. The flocks of sheep and the herds of horses and cows were locked up in the barns. Winter had arrived.

Ishild, now age sixteen, had grown with beauty and agility. She was widely known as the 'Night Watcher' of the village as she developed a habit of going out at night and joining the guards to do night patrol.

She was quick to spot anything unusual and she did spot a few wolves scurrying outside the village a few times. Ishild was also good with a sword and a bow.

Her mother, Rosmunda died ten years ago after giving birth to Ishild's brother, Gerlach. Rosmunda's dying words to her daughter were, "Ishild, everyone is born with a beautiful soul, but some are not beautiful in appearance. Show compassion to them."

Ishild's father, Lord Gerhard raised his children and had them educated and be taught how to defend themselves. Gerlach, however, took the defense teachings too seriously and often fought with his sister and the other children of the village.

Ishild felt that there was something wrong with her brother. He refused to apologize following a fight with her and he would grab a sword and threaten her with it.

"One day I will take over this village and you will be beneath me!" Gerlach would say to her.

"You can't become chief, only the ruling chief's heir will take over," Ishild reminded him, but he was too stubborn to listen.

"I will be chief one day!" Gerlach shouts all through the house. Their father was too busy to discipline his son and Ishild took in his brother's abuse.

Ishild's mind was comforted by the wintry landscape as she admired the cold months. She was always dazzled by the moon's glow on the snow and the stars looked like shiny snowflakes.

On this night, Ishild was doing patrol on her horse Willahelm. She takes in the beauty and the stillness of the night. It was awfully cold and Ishild cuddles up in her fur coat.

"Ishild, you should go and get some sleep, I'll keep an eye out," her friend, Adalhard said to her.

"I'm fine," she replied, but Adalhard shakes his head. Adalhard was the captain of the nighttime guard and a personal friend of Ishild's father and the chief of the Baemi tribe. He had black hair and brown eyes, but to Ishild, his eyes could warm up a gloomy day.

"Let me do one more run around of the village and I'll go home," Ishild adds. Adalhard nods and Ishild urges Willahelm to go. The horse and rider go to the meadow where she spotted a few deer digging in the snow for grass.

Ishild knew that the villagers would appreciate a deer as the Feast of Saint Nicholas was fast approaching. She takes her bow, draws an arrow, and takes aim at a buck.

Suddenly, the buck she was aiming at screeches as if it was afraid of something. Ishild has Willahelm move out of sight and she watches the deer. Just then, the deer run into the woods, but Ishild sees something unusual. It was difficult to see in the dark woods, but Ishild could see something attack one of the deer.

Being curious, Ishild has Willahelm go into a gallop and they rush towards the woods. Willahelm, however, stops dead in his tracks, rears, and neighs.

Ishild calms her horse, but her eyes stare at a pair of bright yellow eyes. The creature then turns and runs away into the darkness. "Stop!" Ishild shouts, but the creature was gone.

She dismounts and investigates the scene. The glow of the moon helped her see better and she could see that the snow was stained with blood. She looks around and notices a pair of large hoof prints. They were cloven-hoof, much like a goat's, but they were of the hind legs.

Ishild stares into the woods, but nothing appeared. "Ishild!" someone shouts and she turns to see the night guard trio coming towards her.

She hides the blood and sweeps away the hoof-prints under the snow with her feet. Adalhard approaches her with a torch. "What happened? We heard you shouting," he said.

"I was chasing a deer, but it got away. It was a foolish thing to do," Ishild lies.

"Don't be too harsh on yourself, the Feast of Saint Nicholas is a few weeks away. There's plenty of time," Adalhard replies and he has the other guards return to their posts. He mounts his horse and Ishild does the same.

She then looks deep into the dark forest, but nothing appeared out of the ordinary. She waits, but still nothing. Ishild turns Willahelm around and they return to the village.

A pair of yellow eyes take a peek out from behind a tree. The creature takes one last look at Ishild before she turns to leave. It remains still and keeps its eyes on her until she was gone. "Beautiful," it says in a low whisper. It then hoists the deer it just killed onto its back and goes deep into the darkness.

* * *

 **From the author: How's this for excitement? While in the film, Krampus does not speak, but rather howls and growls, so I decided long ago to make him speak like a human.**

 **Please leave reviews!**


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Ishild rolls around in her bed, cuddling up tight with the furs she used as blankets. The fire in her fireplace died out, leaving only glowing embers. The cold creeps through the creaks of the windows and Ishild cuddles up even tighter.

All through the remainder of the night, Ishild thought of the creature she saw; she could not get those eyes out of her head.

Just then, she was aroused by a bell, and Ishild realizes that it was the alarm bell. She quickly dresses and hurries out of the house, her father was close behind her.

"My sheep! All my sheep!" a farmer cries out on the steps of the gathering hall.

"Easy lad, what's happened?" Adalhard asks the farmer and he leads everyone to the barn where many sheep were roaming around.

"Oh my heavens, look!" someone exclaims and points to a splatter of blood on the ground. Ishild follows the blood trail and discovers the tangled carcass of a ewe.

"What kind of animal would do this?" the farmer asks, "I blotted the doors tight last night."

Ishild looks at the wooden doors and discovers some claw marks. She counts four marks and looks down on the ground. There was no foot prints, which Ishild thought it was unusual.

"Look!" someone shouts and Ishild and the others look at hoof-prints in the snow. "Those are cloven, the Devil's been through here!" a woman shrieks.

"Nonsense, those look too small, probably a deer," a man replies.

"We should scout around, see if we had any wolves come through here," Adalhard said to his guards.

An idea comes to Ishild's mind; she wanted to find the creature she saw last night. She knew that finding the creature would satisfy her and maybe the village.

She returns to her home to pack some food, prepares her bow and arrows, and goes to collect Willahelm. Ishild, with her horse, watch the men go, and wait for the opportunity to go on her own.

"Where are you going child?" a feminine voice said from behind her. Ishild turns to see Oda, the local storyteller. She looked wise and curious. The old woman had aged gracefully than the other old folk in the village.

"I...uh...I thought I join the men from the rear," Ishild replies, but Oda pats her shoulder.

"You saw something last night and you wish to pursue it," the old woman said and Ishild looks at her with surprise, but she nods.

"I think it was the creature you mentioned in one of you stories," she said and Oda's face brightens.

"Is that so? Well, I will not keep you waiting from your quest," the old woman replies and Ishild looks at her.

"Oda, aren't you going to stop me?" she asks, but Oda shakes her head.

"I believe this creature will not cause you trouble, but you must keep your wits up, there is one foul beast who wishes to stray you away from your quest," Oda warns the young woman.

"What?" Ishild asks, "What kind of a beast?"

"A dark soul, no light in it. It knows no love," Oda replies and that was all she said.

Ishild watches the old storyteller turn and leave. She then gets on Willahelm and urges him to go. Ishild, however, did feel troubled by Oda's words.

Ishild returns to the forest where she found the blood and hoof-prints last night. She locates more hoof-prints leading deep into the woods and she has Willahelm follow them.

Ishild and Willahelm trek through the forest, following the hoof-prints. To Ishild, these prints were too big to be a goat or even a deer and her heart pounds with every step.

Then she hears something ahead of her, rushing water. Ishild stops Willahelm when she sees a river ahead of her and she walks toward the edge. The water was moving fast under the thin sheet of ice.

The hoof-prints had stopped and Ishild had no idea where the creature could've gone. "Do you think it jumped?" she asks Willahelm, who snorts. "I don't see any on the ice," she adds.

Then, Willahelm's ears perk up and he begins to neigh. Ishild tries to calm him, but she knew what was going on inside the horse's head, he was sensing something close by.

Ishild dares to look behind her and sees a couple of dark figures with glinting eyes. Ishild recognizes the shapes, they were wolves and she knew what it meant. Winter was a desperate time for all animals to find food and wolves were no exception.

Ishild urges Willahelm to a gallop, she had to get out of the forest and quick. She has Willahelm follow the river as it might lead her to safety. The horse gallops at top speed, but the wolves were catching up to them.

Ishild lightens the load by letting loose the food sack, but she kept her bow and arrows. The wolves stopped for a brief moment to look at the sack, but they resumed their pursuit.

The horse kept on running, but Ishild urges him to stop. They came upon a waterfall and Ishild had no idea what to do. She had to save Willahelm, but she knew he would run fast enough without her on his back.

She gets off of him and slaps his behind. Willahelm goes into a sprint and was gone. Ishild takes her bow and draws an arrow when she saw the first wolf.

She fires and hits it in the shoulder. It whimpers, but it does not stop the others from walking towards Ishild while growling. She draws more arrows and fires them. More wolves were hit, but they keep on coming.

Ishild then realizes that she was out of arrows and she swings her bow at the wolves. They back away, but suddenly, one jumps at Ishild. She is hit hard by the wolf, but then, she realizes that she was falling.

Both Ishild and the wolf hit the cold water hard and the woman surfaces. She didn't see the wolf and she struggles to reach the shore, but then, a strong current takes her down.

She was caught in the rapids and she was spiraling out of control. "HELP!" Ishild cries out before she is taken under by the current.

She surfaces, again, but she sees a boulder up ahead and struggles to move. It was too late and Ishild hits the rock hard, knocking the wind out of her. Ishild became dizzy and the rapids slow down and became still.

Ishild bobs through the water, she was losing consciousness. She looks up at the gray sky, the cold was paralyzing her body, and her limbs had lost function.

Just then, she hears a splash and grunting noises, but Ishild's vision becomes black before she gets a look at her rescuer.

The being takes the unconscious woman in its arms and returns to shore. It moves the hood of its cloak, revealing a hairy, human face that looked demonic.

It then holds Ishild tight, keeping her warm, and they disappear into the woods as it begins to snow.

* * *

 **From the author: Uh-oh, what's going to happen to Ishild? Find out next time!  
**


	4. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Ishild started to gain consciousness, but she felt her body enclosed by something. It was a bunch of furs from different animals, but she was shocked when she realized she was naked underneath.

Ishild looks around the place; there was a fire roaring in one corner, but Ishild was awe-struck by the walls. They looked to be made of ice and she touches the wall by the bed, it was made of ice.

Then, she hears something and turns to see tiny creatures wearing fur. She lets out a gasp, but one of the tiny beings, who had messy white hair says, "Please don't be afraid, we will not hurt you."

"Who are you? And where are my clothes?" Ishild demands and looks at the beings, "Are you dwarfs?" she asks.

"Yes miss, we are," one of them replies, "And your clothes have been hung up to dry. You took a nasty tumble in the river." Just then, Ishild hears snorting noises and the clanking of hooves. "He's here," the dwarf said.

Ishild looks at the opening and a much larger creature appears. Ishild's heart pounds as she takes in the being's appearance. It was tall and covered in black hair, with cloven hooves for feet, and goat horns were on sides of its head.

"He will not hurt you, he saved your life," a dwarf with blonde hair said. It did little to stop Ishild's pounding heart as she looks into its beaming eyes.

"Are you all right?" the creature asks, its voice was deep.

"I...how long was I out?" Ishild asks.

"All morning and afternoon, its nearly dark outside," the creature answers and Ishild does her best to calm her beating heart. The creature's voice was so deep that it made Ishild shutter.

"Do not be afraid, Meinrad is a gentle soul, unless you taunt him," the blonde dwarf said.

Ishild looks at the creature named Meinrad, "You saved my life?" she asks and he nods.

"Why were you pursuing me?" he asks in return. Ishild looks at Meinrad with confusion, but she then remembers the dead ewe.

"Was it you that killed the farmer's sheep?" she replies.

"I would never set foot in your village!" Meinrad shouts and growls. Ishild scurries into a corner of the bed and the creature realizes what he did. "I apologize, my temper can be...uncontrollable," he said and gives a bow of his head. "No, I did not kill any sheep," he adds.

"Meinrad only hunts animals of the forest," the white-haired dwarf said.

"I didn't mean to make you upset. You see, someone or something killed a sheep in the village and the farmer claims to have shut the door tight," Ishild said to Meinrad.

"I did not kill any sheep," Meinrad replies, "Perhaps it was someone else."

Ishild notices the buck skin hanging on the wall and then remembers the night she saw Meinrad, "So, it was you who scared off the deer that night?" she asks.

"I didn't mean to," Meinrad answers and looks at her clothes that were hanging over the fire. "These are dry," he said to Ishild and adds, "I'll take you back to your village."

"Thank you, but I can find my way back," Ishild replies and the blonde dwarf gives her her clothes.

"It will be dangerous with all those wolves out there," the blonde dwarf said and Ishild sees her empty quiver.

"I will take you to the edge of the forest, then you can run through the meadow," Meinrad said and leaves the room. Ishild gets into her dry clothes and boots.

"Meinrad has never had human company," the white haired dwarf said to Ishild.

"What is this place?" she asks the two dwarfs.

"This is where we live, well, Meinrad does, and we dwarfs have our own place," the blonde dwarf replies and adds, "My name is Runa and this is my husband, Hartwig."

"I'm Ishild, please forgive me for asking this, but what kind of creature is Meinrad?" Ishild asks the two.

"You have to ask him, we found him when he was a little baby. We took him in and raised him. He may look like a beast, but he's gentle as a child," Runa said and the two dwarfs show her the way out of the room.

Ishild takes in the icy walls of the place and they enter a room where it was full of wood. The young woman looks at one and was astonished to see that it was a wood craving. It featured a detailed wolf in a sprint.

She looks at more wood cravings and her head hits something. It was a little chandelier of colored glass.

Ishild sees Meinrad in the entry, "Did you make these?" she asks him.

"I have," he answers.

"These are beautiful," Ishild comments and she notices Meinrad hiding his face under his hood.

"We must go, it will be dark soon," Meinrad insists and Ishild nods. Hartwig lights a torch and the four of them leave. Ishild realizes it was an ice cave when they were outside.

Meinard leads Ishild through the forest in silence, but Runa insists that Ishild talk. "Meinard, I..." she stops, she really didn't want to ask him of what he was.

"What is it...? What is your name?" he asks, looking at her with beaming eyes.

"I'm Ishild," she answers, "I want to thank you for saving my life."

Meinrad stops in his tracks and looks at her with a curious eye. "Is there anything I can do to repay you?" Ishild asks him.

He points with a long claw at her bow, "Can you teach me?" he asks and Ishild looks at her bow.

"The bow? Yes, I can," she answers and they resume their walk.

"And one more thing," he said, "Don't tell anyone of my existence. I am afraid of what they will think of me."

Ishild knew what he was talking about; the villagers would rather hunt down something that looked hideous in appearance.

"I will not say a word about you," Ishild replies and Meinrad nods.

They pass the river and came to the edge of the forest. They heard people shouting and the lights of torches were flickering.

"Thank you Meinrad, I can go from here," Ishild said and she leaves him and two dwarfs.

"You are welcome to come back any time," Hartwig informs her and she nods. She rushes out of the forest, runs across the meadow, and met with the many gazes of her friends and her father and her brother.

"Ishild! What happened to you?!" her father, Gerhard cries out and holds her in his arms.

"Willahelm came back here without you," Adalhard said and Ishild sees her faithful companion tied up in his stall.

"A pack of wolves chased after us. I had to let Willahelm go, so he could escape. I managed to fight off the wolves," Ishild answers, keeping Meinrad secret.

"Ishild, you could've been killed, from now on, no hunting for this...creature," her father insists.

"Yes father," Ishild replies and she and her family head back to their house.

Meinard had watched Ishild run towards her village, almost like deer sprinting towards safety.

"She sees me as a monster," he said to the two dwarfs.

"I don't think so, I know she will come back," Runa replies to Meinrad. The three turn around and disappear into the darkness.

* * *

 **From the author: We finally meet the Krampus, what do you think? 'Meinrad' means in Ancient Germanic for 'strong counsel'.**

 **Stay tuned for more!**


	5. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Ishild could not sleep all through the night, instead she thought about Meinrad. His eyes beamed like the moon and Ishild could not get them out of her head. Meinrad did look like a monster, but he did not like one. He saved her life, a deed that Ishild felt grateful for.

She tried to remember the stories she heard about the creature born with Devil features. Ishild decided to go meet Oda. She dresses in comfortable clothes and a fur coat and quietly creeps out of the hut. It was snowing lightly and wolves were howling in the distance.

Ishild locates Oda's hut and sees a fire burning in the front room. "Oda?" she whispers.

"Speak up child, my hearing is not good," the old woman said and Ishild sees her. She was seated by the window, looking at the dark village.

"Oda, you told me stories about a creature with Delivish features," Ishild said to the old woman.

"Ah, so you did find him?" Oda asks and Ishild stares at her.

"I...I rather not..." she stutters, but Oda holds up a hand.

"Your secret is safe," the old woman replied.

Ishild decides to speak about Meinrad, "He saved my life. I thought monsters eat people."

"Oh, I don't believe that. Some beings are born with hideous features, but have a beautiful soul," Oda said to Ishild.

"I was wondering, does the creature have a name?" Ishild asks the old woman.

"The Devil would give him a cruel name, I know for sure, but I just don't know what it is," Oda replies.

"Is there a devil?" Ishild asks and Oda nods.

"Lucifer, the fallen angel. He was cast out of Heaven by God for many reasons, but mostly for being a cruel trickster. You best keep your eyes and ears open, he may sneak up on you," Oda said, but Ishild thought she was playing another joke.

"So my dear child," Oda adds, "Your friend, he has a beautiful soul, but I see darkness coming for him in due time. He will change."

Ishild was shocked to hear this. "Will Lucifer come for Meinrad?" she gasps.

"It is hard to say, Meinrad's future is foggy," Oda said and places a hand on Ishild's shoulder. "Ishild, protect him," she adds.

Ishild decides to leave Oda's hut and it was starting to snow more heavily. She turns and then stops when she sees a figure; it was small, but the darkness covered its features well. Ishild goes after it, "Stop!" she shouts, but the figure does not stop running.

It runs into a lane where Ishild knew that it would be trapped. She turns the corner, but suddenly, she was hit by something hard. The object was hard as a rock and it knocks Ishild out cold.

()()()()()()()()()()()()

"Ishild?" a voice said to the young woman. Ishild was slowly regaining consciousness, but she could tell that her father was beside her. She opens her eyes to see her father, Gerhard, her brother Gerlach, and Adalhard.

"What...what happened?" she asks them.

"I found you unconscious, it seems that you knocked out by something," Adalhard answers.

"Ishild, what were you doing out there in the middle of the night?" her father demands. She remembers visiting Oda and then seeing a mysterious figure and she went after it.

"I...I went to visit Oda," she begins, but her brother snorts.

"Why would you visit that crazy old lady?" Gerlach asks in a rude tone.

"Gerlach, now's not the time," his father demands and turns to his daughter, "Why Ishild?"

Ishild knew that if she spoke of Meinrad, he will be hunted down and perhaps killed. "I wanted to ask her something, but she told me to wait until morning as she was asleep," she lies.

"Ask her what?" Gerhard asks.

"About mother," Ishild immediately answers and hoped that her father would believe her.

"Well, you should've waited until light," Adalhard replies and asks, "But what happened before you got knocked out?"

"I saw a strange figure, I thought it was an intruder, so I gave chase. I got hit in the head and then blacked out," Ishild answers.

"We did find a rock close to you," Adalhard replies, "Maybe this figure did not want to be followed. What did it look like?"

"I couldn't tell, it was dark, and it looked to be covered in furs," Ishild answers and Adalhard scratches his beard.

"I'll some men do patrol around the village and the forest, but it might've gotten away," he said and he leaves the hut.

"Get some sleep Ishild and for Heaven's sake, don't go wandering after dark, it's not safe," Gerhard demands his daughter and Gerlach gives a grin, he assumed by his father's words.

Ishild did not like the attitude her brother had; he always enjoyed their father's negative words to Ishild. Both her father and her brother leave her room. Ishild looks at her hand mirror to see that she received a bruise on her forehead.

Ishild thought she was hit by a horse's hoof and it did hurt. She did wonder what Meinrad would think if he saw it. She puts away the mirror and finally succumbs to sleep.

* * *

 **From the author: Just who is this mysterious figure? And will Ishild find it before something happens? Find out next time!  
**


	6. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

The rays of dawn etched through the creaks of Ishild's window, but the young woman was already awake. She had prepared her arrows and her bow, she was planning on making a bow for Meinrad, once he got the hang of it. She puts on warm clothes, a fur coat, and covers her bruised forehead with a fur hat.

Ishild quietly creeps out of the hut, making sure that her father and brother were still sleeping. The village was covered in a new sheet of snow and people were starting fires in the chimneys.

Ishild saddles Willahelm and leaves the village. It was dreadfully cold and both Ishild's and Willahelm's breaths could be seen. The young woman gets on her horse and he trots into the forest.

The forest floor was also covered in fresh snow and Ishild saw wolf paw prints. They were recent, so Ishild looks around, but no wolf in sight. Willahelm walks on, but Ishild's bruised head throbbed with every step.

They go deeper into the forest, coming to the river, and that was when they see Runa and Hartwig. "Ishild! We knew you would come back!" Runa exclaims.

Ishild dismounts and Willahelm begins to snort when the ground began to shake. Meinrad appears and the horse neighs, but Ishild calms him down.

Meinrad looks at Willahelm and both horse and beast snort. Willahelm slams his hoof on the ground and Meinrad did the same. "What are you doing?" Ishild asks.

"He's never seen a horse up close before," Runa answers and Ishild looks at Meinrad. Willahelm neighs and Meinrad gives a roar.

"Meinrad! Be quiet!" Hartwig demands as the roar was heard all around. The roar also frightened the horse and he backs away from the creature. Ishild calms him down and looks at Meinrad.

At that moment, Meinrad points with a long finger at Ishild's forehead. "Your head, what happened?" he asks in a deep voice. Ishild did not cover the bruise properly.

"I slipped, it's all right," she lies, she was not sure what Meinrad would think if she told him about what happened.

"You slipped?" Meinrad asks and Ishild nods. He breathes in something, Ishild was not sure why he did that, but she knew that he could smell a lie. "The truth Ishild, tell me the truth," he demands, his voice was deeper now.

Ishild takes a deep breath and answers, "I was running after an intruder last night. He threw a rock at my head and knocked me out." Meinrad touches the bruise with a claw.

"Does it hurt?" he asks and Ishild nods a little.

"Meinrad does not like bad people," Runa said to Ishild. Meinrad touches Ishild's forehead with the fleshly part of his finger and a chill goes down her spine. He then points to the arrows in Ishild's quiver.

"You kept your promise," he said and Ishild nods.

"Watch me first," she replies and pulls out an arrow. She sets her bow and pulls back on the arrow. She lets it loose and it hits a hole in a tree. Meinrad was amazed by this and points to the bow.

Ishild gives him the bow, it was just the right size for him to hold, and he pulls back on the string. "Not too hard," Ishild said and Meinrad loosens it. She gives him an arrow, but he had trouble arranging it.

"Here, like this," Ishild said, helping Meinrad with the arrow. "Draw it back. Now, loose!" she commands and Meinrad lets go of the arrow.

It hits the ground and Meinrad frowns. "Not bad," Ishild said and gives him another arrow. He shoots it and it hits close to the tree.

"You're getting it," Ishild comments and gives him another arrow.

Meinrad fires the arrow and hits the bark of the tree. "Very good," Runa said and Ishild nods.

"It takes time, but I say you're on the right track," she replies and arranges Meinrad's clawed hands on the bow.

Ishild then looks over him, taking mental notes on his posture and hand arrangements. "I think I can find a bow that is big enough for you," she said.

Just then, they hear rustling noises. "Get down!" Hartwig demands and they lay down on the snowy ground.

Ishild sees a buck with large antlers just a little further away from their position. She takes her bow and gets into position. The buck looks around and doesn't seem to notice them.

Ishild takes out an arrow and pulls it back. Meinrad watches her breathe and looks into her blue eyes.

She then lets it loose and it flies toward the buck. The arrow makes a through and through with the eyes and the buck falls down dead.

Ishild and Meinrad walk up to the dead buck. Meinrad sniffs in the scent. "You killed it," he said and points to the arrow, "Through its eyes. How did you do that?" he asks.

"It takes practice to kill an animal in the right spot, the head or the heart," Ishild replies and removes the arrow from the buck's eye.

"I must go, my father insisted that I not stay out here for too long," she adds and tries to move the buck, but it was heavy.

Meinrad takes the buck into his arms and Ishild has him take it to Willahelm. She ties the buck's back legs with rope and attaches it to her saddle.

"Will you teach me to hunt with arrows?" Meinrad asks and Ishild gets on her horse.

"Yes, but once you have mastered the bow first, then we'll hunt," she answers and Willahelm begins to walk. He dragged the buck behind him and the horse and rider were gone.

"I told you you can trust her," Runa said to Meinrad.

Meinrad frowns and walks up to the tree where it still had an arrow. He takes it out and says to the two dwarfs, "She is beautiful and skillful, but I'm just a-"

"Don't you dare speak negatively about yourself," Hartwig demands and Meinrad goes silent. "You're not a monster, you don't act like one," he adds and Meinrad nods.

"She will be back tomorrow, you'll see," Runa said and they turn around and head deep into the forest.

()()()()()()()()()()()()()()

Ishild returns to the village just before midday and the people were astonished when they saw the big buck.

"Where did you find that?" a woman asks.

"In the forest," Ishild simply answers, but then catches sight of her father and brother.

"Ishild! What did I say to you about going into the forest?!" Gerhard shouts at his daughter.

"You didn't tell me anything about going into the forest. You told me not to go wandering after dark," Ishild reminds him.

Gerhard looked taken-aback and doesn't say anything. However, Gerlach steps up to his sister, "You don't take to father like that! You are so stupid Ishild!" he shouts.

"Gerlach! Apologize to your sister!" Gerhard demands, but Gerlach turns around and leaves.

"Father, there's something wrong with him," Ishild said.

"There's a dark aura surrounding him Lord Gerhard," a woman's voice said and Oda appears.

"Nonsense, he is not possessed by the Devil," Gerhard replies.

"The Devil is real, he is a cruel trickster," Oda warns Gerhard, but he doesn't pay attention to the old woman and he leaves.

"Be careful child," Oda said to Ishild, "Your brother has a dark heart."

Some of the people take the buck to the hut where they kept the meat. "We're going to have a good banquet this year," someone said to Ishild.

Ishild takes Willahelm to the stable and mucks out his stall. She was thinking about Oda's words about her brother. Ishild knew that her brother had a dark heart.

She had a hard time believing that the Devil was possessing her brother, but it was possible. "Lucifer, if you bring harm to my brother, I will hunt you down. Even if it takes an eternity," she vows to herself.

Ishild finishes up in the stall and feeds Willahelm. The horse neighs at her, "I swear Willahelm, I will find and take down this evil that is haunting our village. And I am sure Meinrad is not behind it all," Ishild said and leaves the stables.

* * *

 **From the author: There is trouble brewing, but will Ishild find it before it takes over the village? Stay tuned for more!**


	7. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

By the next day, Ishild locates the armory and looks through the bows. She had to find one that was big enough for Meinrad. She finds one made of pine and Ishild checks the strength of the string. It was strong and she takes the bow and a quiver of arrows.

She then takes Willahelm and rides out to the forest, but she was stopped by Adalhard. "Where are you going?" he asks.

"Hunting," Ishild replies and Adalhard raises an eyebrow.

"Again? That buck seems to be enough for the feast," he said.

"I just like going hunting," Ishild adds, but Adalhard didn't believe her.

"I think you should skip the hunting today," he said, but Ishild shakes her head furiously. "Ishild, your father is worried about you. You keep disappearing every day and you skip out on night patrol. What is going on? You're hiding something," he adds.

"I am not hiding anything," Ishild answers and gives her horse a kick and he trots off.

Adalhard keeps his eyes on Ishild and she was gone. He begins to think and goes to collect his horse and he follows Willahelm's hoof prints.

Ishild comes to the same spot as yesterday, but Meinrad and the dwarfs were nowhere to be seen.

"Meinrad? Where are you?" she calls out.

"Hush!" a voice bellows and Ishild falls backward onto her buttocks. Then, something comes toward her, but it was under the snow.

Ishild froze on the spot and Willahelm neighs. Then, a roar breaks the silence, "Helmold!"

Meinrad appears and stands in front of Ishild. The creature pops up from under the snow, it was a dwarf with red hair, and he jumps up and down.

"That was fun!" the dwarf, Helmold exclaims, but Runa rushes up to him and slaps him.

"You scared Ishild! That is bad! Shame on you!" she shouts and Helmold frowns. Meinrad turns to face Ishild and held out a claw.

She takes it and he raises her to her feet. "You must forgive Helmold, he is a trickster," Meinrad said and Ishild nods.

He then notices the bow and points to it. "That one is for you, it's a present," Ishild said and gives both the bow and arrows to Meinrad. He takes them and draws an arrow. He aims at a hole in a tree and fires. The arrow hits its target and Ishild applauds.

"Well done!" she comments, but Meinrad silences her. He points to something a little further away, but Ishild had trouble finding it. Then, she sees it; a wild pig, it was sniffing the ground for something. It didn't notice them and it keeps moving.

Meinrad hides behind a tree, with Ishild close behind him. Meinrad stares at the pig and draws an arrow. Then, a twig snaps and the pig hears it and runs away. "No!" Meinrad shouts, but Ishild silences him.

"Over there," she whispers and points to a badger, just beyond their reach. Meinrad draws back his arrow and lets the arrow loose. The arrow hits the badger in the head and it falls over. "Amazing!" Ishild said and Meinrad goes to collect the badger.

"I think Meinrad has mastered the bow, don't you think so Ishild?" Hartwig asks and the young woman nods.

"Once he catches a big buck then he will be the master," Helmold replies, but everyone stares at him with disgust.

Meinrad shows the badger to Ishild and she carefully removes the arrow from its head. "I will skin its fur for you, it will be your present," the tall creature said to her.

"Thank you," she replies and adds, "I have an idea, we should have our own feast on St. Nicolas day."

"A feast! What a splendid idea!" Runa exclaims and the two other dwarfs nod in agreement.

Then, Meinrad sniffs the air, and Ishild knew that there was an intruder nearby. Ishild then realizes that might be Adalhard as he was suspicious about her. "Stay here! And stay down!" she commands and Meinrad obeys. He and the three dwarfs hide while Ishild collects Willahelm and walks away from them.

"Ishild!" she hears Adalhard's voice, but there was something off about the tone. He sounded like he was in danger and Ishild gets on Willahelm and gives him a kick and the horse gallops off.

To her horror, Adalhard was fighting with the wild pig and it was biting on his arm. He cries out in pain and Ishild sets her bow, draws an arrow, and fires. The arrow hits the boar in the back of the head and it cries out in surprise.

It did not die, instead it looks at Ishild with fire in its eyes, and it charges at her. Willahelm rears and neighs at the boar. The wild pig squeals, but it doesn't run away.

Suddenly, the boar charges at the horse, and chomps its teeth into Willahelm's leg. The horse wails in pain and Ishild fires another arrow, hitting the boar in the eye.

The boar backs away and then falls on its side and dies. "Ishild," Adalhard said and she looks at him. He was covered in blood and Ishild examines his wounds. She feared that his arm was broken and that was when he passes out.

"Ishild!" Meinrad calls out and she turns to see him coming toward her with the dwarfs.

"Oh no, he's hurt really bad," Runa said when she sees Adalhard's wounds.

"I have to take him back to the village," Ishild replies and turns to Meinrad, "Help me get him-" she stops when she notices Willahelm limping.

Hartwig examines the horse, "That boar chomped down on his leg really hard. I don't know if he can make it back to your village," the dwarf said. Ishild comes to Willahelm's side and sees the damage on his leg.

"What can I do? Both of them will die if I don't get help," Ishild pleads and hides her tears. Meinrad knew Ishild was afraid of losing both horse and her human companion.

"We need to see the healing dwarf," he said to Hartwig and Runa. Both dwarfs nod and Meinrad takes Adalhard onto his back.

"She will want payment," Helmold said and Meinrad points to the dead boar. The three dwarfs drag the animal across the snow, following Meinrad, and Ishild also follows behind with Willahelm.

* * *

 **From the author: Oh no! Poor Adalhard and Willahelm. Will they make it? Find out next time!  
**


	8. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Ishild, Meinrad, and the dwarfs had walked through the thick forest and the sun was in the middle of the sky.

Meinrad had carried Adalhard all the way through the woods and Ishild had to balance Willahelm as he limped on his bad leg. Ishild then sees the trees thinning out and up ahead was a waterfall, but it was covered in ice. "What is this place?" she asks Meinrad.

"This is where Eydis, the healing dwarf lives," he answers and points to a hut. It looked to be made of ice instead of wood.

"Eydis! Are you in there?" Hartwig shouts at the front door.

There was no answer and Hartwig yells, "Hello?!"

"Not so loud!" a feminine voice answers, "I am here." Then, a dwarf with gray hair appeared. She wore many beads and bells around her neck. "Ah, Meinrad, good to see you."

Ishild steps forward and Eydis notices her. "So this is the girl you mentioned. My, my, she's beautiful," the dwarf said. Ishild takes a deep breath and comes down to the dwarf's level.

"Please, I need your help," Ishild pleads and shows Eydis the horse and Adalhard.

"Dear, oh dear," Eydis said, examining the wounds on Willahelm and Adalhard. "Was it a wild boar?" she asks them.

"Yes, how do you know?" Ishild asks and Eydis points to the dead boar that the other dwarfs were dragging.

"And I believe that boar is payment," Eydis said and Meinrad nods. "Let me see what I have," she adds and returns to her hut. There was the sound of clattering items and Eydis shouts, "Girl, get in here please!"

Ishild looks at Meinrad, who insists that she go into the hut. Ishild obeys and enters in the tiny hut where there were many herbs and plants as well as many knick-knacks.

"Come here child, I need your help," Eydia said to her and points to something on a high shelf. "Can you reach that?" she asks and Ishild looks up to see some birch branches.

Ishild takes them down and Eydis takes a branch and strips it of its skin. She puts it into a cauldron where it boils and Eydis adds some herbs to it. "You might want to shut your eyes," she warns and Ishild obeys.

Just then, there was an explosion and outside, Meinrad falls onto his back and snorts. Eydis pours the contents into a vial and hands it over to Ishild. "Pour this over your horse's wounds and they'll heal quite nicely," the dwarf commands.

"But what about Adalhard?" Ishild asks.

"I rather not waste my magic on a human. Besides, your friend would be very suspicious of how his wounds healed up. I think your village will tend to him," Eydis replies.

Ishild takes the vial and walks over to Willahelm. The horse began to panic when he saw the strange vial and Ishild turns to Meinrad, "Can you gently hold him?" she asks.

Meinrad nods and embraces the horse with his arms and claws. Ishild pours some of the potion on the wounds and Willahelm begins to neigh as if in pain. Ishild watches as the bite wounds began to close up, but Willahelm screams.

"What's the matter with him?" Hartwig asks.

"The healing process is a bit of a painful one," Eydis replies and then the horse begins to calm down. The wound heals completely and Willahelm stands on his four feet.

Ishild checks out her horse and sees that he is in good spirits. "Thank you Eydis," Ishild said to the dwarf and she nods.

"I think we need to take Ishild back to the village, it will be dark by the time we get there," Runa said to everyone and Ishild looks up at sky. It was indeed the afternoon and it would take them half the day to get back.

"Let's not waste time," Meinrad replies to the group. Ishild has him place Adalhard, who was still unconscious on Willahelm's back and they start the journey back.

"Take care Ishild, I hope to see you, again," Eydis said from afar.

Meinrad took the front and occasionally looks back at Ishild. "Is something wrong, Meinrad?" she asks him.

"Nothing is wrong," he answers, but Ishild does not believe him. Runa and Hartwig insist that he talk to her. "Ishild, why do you come back to see me?" Meinrad finally asks.

"You saved my life and I am forever grateful for that. Therefore, I wanted to repay you," Ishild answers, but Meinrad stops and shows her his demonic face.

"But are you afraid of this?" he asks and Ishild shakes her head.

"My mother told me that everyone is born with a beautiful soul, but some are not beautiful in appearance. I honestly think some beautiful people are born with arrogance," Ishild explains and adds, "You, Meinrad have one."

Runa and Hartwig nod in agreement. "See Meinrad, there are some people in this world who don't judge others by their appearance," Runa said to the goat-like creature.

Meinrad stops and Ishild notices his eyes were full of fury. "I wish my mother did not judge me! Or my father!" he shouts, angrily. He then tears through the snow and the grass underneath it.

He roars and scratches the bark of some trees. Ishild could not take it anymore and she jumps on him, embracing him. "Don't! Don't let the hatred consume you!" she pleads.

Meinrad stops raging, but his breathing was still labored. "I don't think you are a monster," Ishild said to him, "But when you unleash your fury like that, then others will say you are."

Ishild holds him tight and gently caresses his cheek, calming him down. "Thank you Ishild," he said and stands up to his feet. They resume their journey back and they finally made it to the edge of the forest.

The sun was setting and Adalhard began to moan. "He's waking up, I better get some help for his injuries. Thank you for everything today," Ishild said to Meinrad and the three dwarfs.

She turns to go, but Meinrad speaks, "You can come back whenever you like."

"I will Meinrad," Ishild replies and hurries out of the forest, taking Willahelm by the rein.

Meinrad watches her go and he hears her shout, "Help! Someone help! Adalhard's been injured!" The village guards see her and their captain. Adalhard was taken off of Willahelm and someone examines his arm.

"How did this happen?" a guard asks.

"A wild boar, I chased it away," Ishild answers and the guards take their captain to a hut where he received medical attention.

Ishild sees her father and brother, they looked angry. She knew that she was going to receive an angry lecture from her father and she decides to be brave. Ishild takes Willahelm to the sable, where she unsaddles him and feeds him.

The horse neighs at her and Ishild replies, "I have to Willahelm, but I hope father will not punish me too severely."

Ishild leaves the stable and goes to her hut, where she was surprised to see the chief. "Chief Randulf, what are you doing here?" Ishild asks, although she suspected that her father brought him.

"Ishild, your father tells me that something is amiss with you," the chief replies and Ishild's stomach drops. She had to think of something to protect Meinrad.

"Come, we wish to speak with you," her father, Lord Gerhard commands and she enters the hut.

* * *

 **From the author: Uh-oh, what could this mean? Find out in the next chapter coming up!  
**


	9. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

Ishild took a seat across from her father and Chief Randulf. She takes a deep breath and waits for one of them to speak.

"Ishild, your father is concerned about you. From what he has told me, you disappear into the forest and you are there all day. Why, from what I heard, one of the guards said you made off with two bows today, your own and a spare, but you came back with one," Chief Randulf said to her.

"Ishild, I just want to know what is going on," Gerhard said to his daughter. Ishild does not speak, she could not think of a way to get out of this.

"The village is grateful for that buck you brought back, everyone will be merry on St. Nicholas day," Chief Randulf said to her.

Ishild then had an idea and she speaks, "I just love the forest, especially in the winter time. It's so peaceful and quiet. I just love to be there and not have to worry about anything."

"Well Ishild, you do have responsibilities here. You are part of night patrol and you have not joined them in days," Lord Gerhard said, but Chief Randulf just chuckles.

"Oh, leave her be Gerhard, if she wants to be in the forest then let her. She is good with her bow and I do admire her spirit," the chief replies and Ishild smiles at him. "Plus, I do need someone to do patrol in the forest, there have been strange things going on," he adds.

"Like what?" Ishild asks, curiously.

"Apart from your sightning of an intruder and the farmer's dead ewe, the people are telling me that someone has been leaving things outside of their huts," Chief Randulf answers and adds, "Like a severed leg of a deer or there have been trails of blood leading out of the village."

"Blood?" Ishild asks, again.

"Yes, and just last night around midnight I believe, the guards said they chased away a bear that came too close to our village. I have never seen a bear come close to our village," Chief Randulf said to Ishild.

"But I don't understand, do bears hibernate in winter?" Gerhard asks the chief.

"I wish I had an answer for that, but I think this one doesn't," the chief answers and looks to Ishild, "So, you have my permission to scout the forest to your heart's content, I do believe it will do us some good if you find whoever is responsible for these strange happenings."

Just then, Gerlach came in, his face was full of fury. "Wait a minute, you're just letting her do whatever she wants?!" he bellows at the chief.

"Gerlach, keep your voice down," his father demands, but his son doesn't listen.

"When I am chief, I'm going to lock her up!" Gerlach shouts and points at her sister. Ishild's stomach drops; how could her brother say something like that?

"Gerlach, you can't become chief, Chief Randulf has a son and he will take over when his father passes," Ishild said to him, but her brother doesn't listen and leaves the room.

"Chief, I'm sorry," Gerhard said to his friend. Chief Randulf, however, did not accept Gerhard's apology.

"Your son is a hateful creature," he said to Gerhard, "If he shows me disrespect, especially towards your daughter, again, I will have him banished from this village."

"Oh, chief! Please! Don't send him away!" Gerhard pleads with him.

"I have been speaking to Oda and she says Gerlach has a dark soul, and I have to agree with her," Chief Randulf said to him.

"Oh, that crazy old lady!" Gerhard mumbles under his breath.

Chief Randulf stands up to leave and Ishild helps him to the door. "Chief, do you really think my brother is possessed by the Devil?" she whispers to him.

"There is no doubt in my mind and I am sorry for you as you deal with him every day. Plus your father does not displine him," Chief Randulf said to her. He then looks at her with his gray eyes.

"Why don't you come to dinner tomorrow? Just you Ishild, I do want to hear what's been going on in the forest and my son would appreciate it," Chief Randulf asks her.

"I accept your invitation, chief, I will be there before sunset," Ishild answers him and he chuckles.

Chief Randulf then gets on his horse and leaves. Ishild shivers as it had gotten really cold. She shuts the door and retires to her bedroom.

"What was that you said to the chief?" she heard her father ask and she turns to see him.

"He invited me to dinner," she answers and a look of delight forms on his face.

"You must find your best dress, none of those furs will do," Gerhard said and then Gerlach comes in.

"Why did he invite you?! You're a girl!" Gerlach snaps.

"What's wrong with being a girl?" Ishild asks and adds, "Gerlach, why do you hate me? What did I ever do to you?"

"Everything!" Gerlach shouts at her and leaves. Gerhard does not speak and instead, he leaves his daughter's room.

Ishild felt hurt by her brother's words, but she still did not understand why Gerlach hated her. If he was possessed by the Devil, then she had to find a way to free him.

Ishild opens her window, gazing up at the starry night, and she says in a whisper, "Mother, if you are with God, see if you can help Gerlach find some light in his soul."

She then shuts the window and cuddles up in her fur blankets. Tomorrow was going to be an exciting day, she felt it in her gut.

* * *

 **From the author: Gerlach is bad news, will he find some light? Find out later!**


	10. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

When morning came, Ishild got out of bed and stretches. She then shivers as it was cold in her room. She was about to dress in warm furs when the warning bell's ringing echoed throughout the village.

"Now what?" Ishild asks herself and hurries out of the hut. The people were gathering by someone's hut and Ishild struggles to get up to the front.

"Look!" a woman shrieks and points to something that was dangling on the front door. Ishild looks at it closely and realizes that it was a paw that may have been belonged to a baby bear.

"What in Heaven's name is going on?!" the woman's husband shouts and comforts his wife. Ishild looks down and sees that someone or something had erased their footprints in the snow.

"The Devil is taunting us! He is playing cruel tricks with us!" someone calls out and the people begin to cry out at once.

"Enough!" Ishild shouts over the crowd and everyone looks at her. "Now, just calm down, and look here. Someone erased their prints. Now I think we are dealing with someone, one of our own who is playing cruel tricks on us," Ishild adds and the villagers began to chant among themselves.

"What I heard from the chief, a bear came to this village one night. Now, I have reason to believe that it was a mother bear looking for her cub. See how small this paw is?" Ishild asks and the villagers look at the paw.

"It is easy to kill a cub than a full grown bear," a man said to the crowd.

"But who would kill a bear cub?" another man asks.

"As Ishild said, one of us must be doing these terrible things," a woman replies and the villagers begin to talk among themselves.

Ishild had no idea, she wanted to go and meet Meinrad before the day was out. "I believe the chief would be wise enough to inform you in what you should do," she said and several of the villagers march towards the chief's big hut.

Ishild returns to her hut and takes her quiver full of arrows and her bow. She saddles Willahelm and he gallops towards the forest as the winter sun shines ever so bright.

She finds Meinrad and the dwarfs by the river as they were hunting for any animals coming for a drink. "Ishild!" Runa calls out. Meinrad looks up to see Ishild and gives a slight bow.

"Meinrad, I have something to ask you," she said to him.

"Ask me," he replies.

"Have you ever seen anything suspicious? Like a person other than me?" Ishild asks him.

Meinrad shakes his head and answers, "The only person I have seen is you. Why do you ask?"

"This morning, a baby bear's paw was found hung outside a family's hut," Ishild replies and the creature snorts. "And some nights ago, a mother bear came to our village. I suspect she was finding her cub," Ishild adds.

"Wait, I have seen the bear," Meinrad said and Ishild's eyes widened. "She was crying and my heart ached inside for some reason. I thought her cub was dead, killed by a man's hand," he adds.

"Well, I believe someone did kill the cub as it is easy to kill a baby bear then a full grown bear," Ishild said.

"Meinrad has killed a bear before," Helmold said to her. Meinrad turns around to face him and snorts at him.

"Where did the mother bear go?" Ishild asks Meinrad. He points across the river and gestures to her to get on his back. "What are you doing?" she asks him, again.

"Please, trust me," he urges her and she climbs on to his back and grabs his horns tight. Then, Meinrad takes a big leap across the river and lands safely on the snowy ground.

"Where did you learn to do that?" Ishild asks, her heart pounding. He just chuckles and lets her off. They turn to face the dwarfs and Willahelm, who were on the other side. "It's all right Willahelm, I will not take long," she calls to her horse.

The two turn and walk towards the direction Meinrad saw the bear. They found the bear's paw prints and they follow them.

Some time later, Ishild spots something on the ground, a knife buried under the snow. It was covered in blood and Ishild shows it to Meinrad. He points to something in the distance.

It took a long time for Ishild to register what it was, but when her mind told her what it was, her heart stopped. "It's the bear," she whispers and Meinrad gestures her to get on his back, again.

Then, they hear the bear roar and Meinrad goes into a run, with Ishild holding on to his horns. The bear was quick and she caught up to them. Ishild takes out an arrow and fires, hitting the bear in the shoulder.

The bear did not stop and instead, bites her fangs into Meinrad's arm. He wails in pain, but continues running. Before the bear bit into Meinrad, again, Ishild kicks her in the nose and that slows her down.

Then, Ishild realizes that she was holding the blood-covered knife and it hit her, it was the baby bear's blood and its mother was smelling her cub. "Hold on!" Meinrad shouts to Ishild as they saw the river.

Meinrad takes a giant leap, but that caused Ishild to lose her grip on the knife and it falls into the river. They landed on the other side and the bear stops in her tracks. She roars at them, but it sounded more like crying.

Ishild looks into the water, but she knew that the knife was gone. "Damn!" she says to herself, but then sees Meinrad's injured arm. "Does it hurt?" she asks him.

"Only a little, I don't think it's serious," he answers and Ishild tares off his sleeve. She then applies some snow to the wounds and Meinrad winces. When the bleeding stopped, Ishild tares off some of her own sleeve and wraps up his arm.

"Why are you being so...so..." Meinrad tries to think of a word.

"My mother said I must always show compassion to others," Ishild answers and rubs his hairy arm.

"Thank you," Meinrad said and then, the dwarfs and Willahelm arrive.

"What happened?" Runa asks, but then sees the bear disappearing into the woods on the other side. They gather themselves and head back in the direction of Ishild's village.

They stop when they reached the edge of the forest and the day was almost half-way done.

"Meinrad, I want to thank you for saving my life, again," Ishild said to him.

He shows his arm that she wrapped up, "And I thank you for this," he replies and adds, "I know why the mother bear was chasing us."

"So do I, someone killed her cub with that knife and its blood was on it," Ishild said and Meinrad notices the missing knife.

"What happened to it?" he asks and Ishild explains what had happened when they escaped from the bear. "I'm sorry, it's particularly my fault," he said.

"Don't blame yourself too much," Ishild replies.

"Do you think we'll find this person who is responsible for all this mess?" Hartwig asks the two.

"If he is residing in my village, then yes we will find him," Ishild answers and gets on Willahelm.

"Be careful Ishild," Meinrad warns her and she nods. Willahelm then goes into a trot and the horse and rider return to the village.

"Oh Meinrad, you like her," Helmold teases the gentle giant. Meinrad snorts at him, but does not yell at him.

"It's true Helmold, Ishild is the only human being that has shown me compassion and kindness," Meinrad replies and Helmold looks at him in surprise.

"Why don't you tell her how you feel?" Runa asks.

"What if...what if she rejects me?" Meinrad asks in return.

"I don't think so, as you said, she has shown you compassion and kindness," Runa replies, but Meinrad does not say a word.

They then turn around and walk into the forest, just as the wind began to blow and made the trees sway.

* * *

 **From the author: Well, seems that Meinrad has a lot on his mind, but will he admit his feelings to Ishild? We'll just have to wait and see.**

 **Please leave reviews!**


	11. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

Ishild returned to her hut in order to prepare herself for dinner with Chief Randulf and his family. She really did not want to go, but she knew that her father would want her to impress the chief.

She pulled out a green dress with decorative patterns along the sleeves and ties her hair in a braided bun. She then puts on a necklace that belonged to her mother.

"Do you want to escort you to the chief's hut?" Gerhard asks her daughter, but she shakes her head. She puts on her fur coat and leaves her family hut.

The village was lit with torches and the guards were doing their patrol. Ishild notices Adalhard with a few of his men. Adalhard's injured arm was in a make-shift sling made of cloth.

"Adalhard, are you all right?" Ishild asks him.

"I am well, it hurts once in a while, but I want you to remind me, I was attacked by a wild boar right?" Adalhard asks in return.

"That is right and then you passed out," Ishild answers and Adalhard nods. He lets her go and she walks toward the chief's enormous hut where it was much elaborate then the other huts.

Many guards were patrolling outside and some pine branches were hanging off of the doors. It was custom for the village to hang green pine branches in preparation for the feast of Saint Nicolas.

Ishild enters the chief's hut where she smelled the scent of spices and other smells of food being cooked.

"Ah, Ishild, welcome!" a feminine voice said and Ishild turns to see the chief's wife, Hildegard. Like her husband, Hildegard had gray hair, but had lovely emerald green eyes.

"Let Helga take your coat," Hildegard said and her maid takes Ishild's fur coat. "Come, come," the chief's wife insists and Ishild follows her to the great room, where Chief Randulf and two boys and two girls were sitted at a table.

Ishild looks them over, the children had dark brown hair, brown eyes, and their skin was a bit lighter than her own. The youngest, a girl looked to be in her early teens.

"Ishild, these are our children; Amalric our oldest son, Giltbert, Romilda, and Signy," Chief Randulf introduces his offspring to her.

The chief's children give slight bows to Ishild and she bows back. She then takes a seat next to the chief as a roasted pig was brought in, along with some bread and other foods. Their cups were filled with wine.

"Eat to your heart's content," Hildegard said to Ishild. She looks at the food, but she wasn't feeling hungry at all.

"So Ishild, tell us, what did you come across while in the forest," Chief Randulf said and the young woman takes a sip of wine.

"Well, on the first adventure, I had the misfortune to be chased by wolves," Ishild begins and the girls, Romilda and Signy ooed.

"Was it scary?" Giltbert asks her.

"The only thing you must know about the forest, do not show any fear. I fought them off, but I ran out of arrows," Ishild continues and they gasp.

"What did you do?" Signy asks.

"I hit them with my bow until they got the message and they ran away," Ishild said, keeping Meinrad out of the conversation.

"I am too afraid to go into the forest," Romilda said to her.

"Oh, the forest is beautiful, especially in the winter time with the snow covering the ground and the wind blowing through the trees. I love winter, I always have," Ishild replies and the family chuckles.

"Well, you are a good hunter," Amalric said, but his father laughs out loud.

"Good? Is that all you can say, boy? Taking down a full grown buck, you call that 'good'?" Chief Randulf asks hid oldest son.

Ishild hides a smile, but then, Hildegard asks, "Ishild, did you know that your mother and I were good friends?"

"She was good friends with everyone," her husband replies, "Tis a shame she is no longer with us."

"I wish she was still here," Ishild said, truthfully.

Hildegard clears her throat and looks at Ishild. "We are worried about you living with that father and brother of yours," she said and Ishild was taken a-back.

"Ishild," Chief Randulf said and she looks at him. "My wife and I thought that maybe you come and live here with us," he explains.

"What?" Ishild asks in shock.

"Gerhard pays no mind to either you and that hateful son of his. That Gerlach is another story; I have spoken to Oda and she suspects that Lucifer has consumed his heart and filled with hate," Chief Randulf explains to her.

Ishild looks at him and her heart begins to thump hard against her chest.

"And I have been thinking of banning them from this village. You see, your father is up to something, and I suspect he wants to do away with me and my family. With us gone, that son of his will rule this village with an iron fist," Chief Randulf explains to her.

"But...what gave you that impression?" Ishild asks.

"My spies, including Adalhard. I am sorry Ishild, your father has grown...unstable since your mother died. We wish to adopt you and you can live here in safety. Your family will have to fend for themselves," Chief Randulf said to her. He then points to his oldest son, Amalric.

"We thought you would be a good match for our son," Hildegard said, cheerfully.

Ishild could not believe it; the chief and his family were planning to do away with her family and make her a wife to a man she barely knew.

"Chief Randulf," Ishild said and stands up on her feet. "With all due respect, I must decline the proposal to marry your son. And please, do not banish my family," she pleads.

Ishild knew that the village was surrounded by tense forest and there was the possibility that her father and brother would come across Meinrad or the dwarves. She did not want him be subjected to being called a monster or the Devil's child.

"Ishild, we want to protect you," Hildegard said, but the young woman shakes her head.

"I must go," Ishild replies and leaves the great room in hast. She grabs her fur coat from Helga and runs out of the chief's hut.

It had started to snow and Ishild looks down on the ground. She sees some small-size prints that appeared recent and her heart stops.

She knew that her brother had spied on her and she hurries home. To her horror, her father was waiting for her.

"Ishild, get in here, now," Gerhard orders. Ishild did not want to obey, but she does and shuts the door.

Suddenly, someone pushes her from behind and she falls to the floor. She looks to see her brother towering over her.

"After all I have done for you and this is how you repay us," Gerhard said to his daughter.

"Father, please, I don't-" "Silence!" her father shouts at her. Ishild notices that a grin formed on her brother's face.

"What should we do?" Gerlach asks his father.

Gerhard appeared to be thinking, "We can't do away with her, we will be executed for sure. Let's lock her until I can think of something," he said and grabs her daughter by the hair.

"Let go of me!" Ishild cries, but she was silenced when her brother slaps her.

"I wanted to do that for a long time," Gerlach said and pushes her from behind. They take her to the top floor where they kept bunches of dried flowers.

"Stop it! Please!" Ishild pleads with them, but they ignore her. She struggles with her father, but then, Gerlach bites her arm. She cries out in pain, but Gerhard places a hand over her mouth.

He shoves Ishild into the room and says, "Make one sound and I will kill you." He shuts the door and locks it.

Ishild pounds on the door for a short time, but she then stops. It was no use as she was trapped and there was no way out, not even a window can help her escape.

The room was cold like the weather outside and she cuddles up tight in her fur coat. She looks at the bite she received from Gerlach, it was not bleeding, but it hurt.

Ishild goes to a corner where the chimney's spout was. It was warm and Ishild sits beside it. She begins to pray that someone had heard her cries and bring help.

Chief Randulf was right, her father had grown unstable and her brother was pure evil. Lucifer had consumed them both.

Ishild begins to cry, she was afraid of what will happen to her, but she was mostly afraid of what will happen to Meinrad.

"Mother, please protect him," she prays and cries herself to sleep.

Outside of Ishild's hut, in a snowmound, Helmold had heard the whole ordeal. "Lock her up will you?" he asks and a grin forms on his face.

Helmold quickly digs through the snow, heading out of the village, and into the forest. He will be back with help.

* * *

 **From the author: Poor Ishild! Will Helmold bring help in time? Find out later!**


	12. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

Ishild was not sure how long she was asleep, but she was awakened by noises. They were coming from above her on the roof. They sounded like hooves and that's when she realized who it was.

"Meinrad!" she whispers through a hole and the hooves walk over to her spot. A pair of beaming yellow eyes peer into the hole and Ishild's heart thumps louder than ever.

"Ishild, are you all right?" he asks.

"You shouldn't have come, the villagers will kill you if they see you," Ishild whispers to him.

Meinrad looks around, he sees the lights of torches wandering around the village and he breathes steadily. "I am not going anywhere without you," he whispers back and asks, "How can I get you out?"

"My father has the key and he doesn't sleep at all," Ishild replies and then slips two fingers through the hole. "Can you make this hole bigger? Just try not to make too much noise," she adds and Meinrad begins to break the wooden roof apart, piece by piece.

After awhile, the hole was big enough for Ishild to slip through with the help from Meinrad. She then pulls him down when a light from a torch was close to them.

Once the guard was gone, Ishild looks at the forest just beyond the village. "Can you make it that far?" she asks in a whisper.

"I'll try," he answers and gestures her to get on his back. Ishild holds on to his horns as Meinrad steps backwards and then, he jumps in one giant leap across the rooftops of the huts, passing the moon above them.

Meinrad lands hard on the ground, just within reach of the forest and he dashes off into a run with Ishild still on his back. She then sees a light from a torch just beyond them.

Ishild then sees the dwarfs and Meinrad stops. Ishild gets off of him and says, "You were crazy for coming, what if a guard saw you? You'll lose your head or something worse than that."

"I don't care about that," Meinrad replies and his breath was seen as he snorts. "Tell me, what happened? Helmold told me you were locked up," he asks and Ishild looks at the ground.

"Ishild, please, tell us," Runa said to her. The young woman presses her fingers to her eyes, trying to control the tears from coming down.

"The chief was planning to banish my father and brother because he suspected that they were going to assassinate him and his family. He also planned on marrying me to his oldest son. I barely know any of the chief's family," Ishild explains and Meinrad's heart filled with anger.

He was angry at the chief for wanting to marry off Ishild to someone she barely knew. "And your family locked you up?" Hartwig asks and Ishild nods and fresh tears flow down her cheeks.

"My brother hates me, I wish I knew why, but there is something wrong with him. My father barely pays attention to us, but he is a scheming fool," Ishild said to them.

"Why is your father a scheming fool?" Helmold asks, it was out of curiosity.

"Oh, you idiot, don't you get it? Her father probably wanted to install both his children into the chief's household," Runa said to the dwarf.

Ishild nods and adds, "I know my father wants to be in the chief's good graces, but mostly for the riches. Being an adviser is not enough for my father."

Meinrad wipes away the tears from Ishild's cheeks with his claws. "You are more than welcome to stay here. Don't go back to your village," he said and Ishild nods, again. She then embraces him, catching him off guard, but he returns the embrace.

"I say that in light of these events, we should have the celebration of Saint Nicholas tonight," Helmold said to them.

"I agree, it is a lovely night for a celebration," Runa replies and her husband nods.

"I will go on ahead and tell everyone," Helmold said and in a flash, he digs through the snow and was gone.

Ishild watches the dwarf go and asks, "How does he do that?"

"It is his gift, he is a natural digger," Meinrad answers, but Runa chuckles.

"He is a mole," she whispers to Ishild and the young woman laughs. Ishild then looks up at the bright moon in the sky and at the stars that were glittering.

"Tis beautiful in the winter," Ishild said to them and Meinrad also looks up at the sky. He then pulls out the badger's skin and shows it to Ishild.

"I kept my promise, in honor of Saint Nicholas," he said to her and Ishild takes it and loops the skin around her neck like a scarf.

"Thank you, it's cozy," she replies and they follow Helmold's snow trail deep into the forest. They hear the howling of wolves and the hooting of owls. Ishild stays close to Meinrad and he keeps a lookout.

"Are there more dwarfs?" Ishild asks Runa and Hartwig.

"Oh, there is a whole community of them," Hartwig replies, "No human has ever found us, well, except for you, but we trust you. Besides, they wish to meet you after we told them about you."

"Be careful though, some of them are just as mischievous as Helmold," Runa warns Ishild and she nods. The pain where the bite was on her arm was throbbing, again, but she ignores it.

After what seemed like forever, Ishild notices lights in the distance and they continue to walk towards it. Ishild hears chattering and some other noises when they got closer.

Meinrad stops and so does Ishild when they made it to the dwarf community. Ishild takes in the setting; it was actually a clearing in the forest with snow mounds. Smoke was coming out of holes from the mounds and the chattering diminished when the dwarfs saw Meinrad.

"It's Meinrad!" a dwarf calls out and there came cheering and shouting.

"Look! It's Ishild!" another calls out and more cheering came. Ishild looks at the dwarfs; they were wearing different kinds of furs and Ishild thought she counted at least one-hundred.

The welcoming was too much for Ishild as the dwarfs crowded around her, shaking her hands and tugging on her coat and dress. "Enough!" Meinrad calls out and the dwarfs stop in what they were doing.

"Give the girl some space, she has had a terrible night," Runa said to everyone. There were whispers among the dwarfs and one offers a bottle of wine to her.

"Drink your sorrows away," one of them said and Ishild takes a sip. It actually tasted better than any other wine she had in her village.

"Not too much, we still have a celebration to look forward to," Hartwig said to Ishild. Then both he and Runa take Ishild away from Meinrad.

"We have to fix that hair of yours," Runa points out and Ishild looks back at Meinrad, who hides a chuckle.

Ishild passes mounds where many dwarfs were cooking and making other preparations for the feast. "This is a nice place," she comments to Runa and Hartwig.

"Oh, you'll like it here. No humans to bother us, which means no ridicule," Hartwig replies and Ishild nods. She did like the sound of that as she felt harassment by her family every day.

They take her into a snow-mound and Runa orders her husband to go. "You take care of Meinrad, he needs attention," Runa whispers to Hartwig and he leaves.

"What kind of attention?" Ishild asks as Runa takes off her fur-coat.

"Never you mind. Now, let me see," the dwarf replies and begins to comb Ishild's hair. The young woman relaxes as she knew she was in for the night of her life.

()()()()()()()()()()()

Back in the village, Oda the storyteller knew something was amiss in her hut. She knew that someone was going to kill her tonight and she accepted her fate. The old woman sits by her fireplace where the fire was dying.

The front door opens, but Oda does not see anyone, however she senses that someone was outside. "Lucifer, away with you!" she shouts, but then, a figure rushes in. Oda was pushed to the floor and hands enclosed around her throat.

Oda did not fight, she was not strong enough, and she was being choked to death. She looks at her attacker and before her vision goes black, she forces out, "You...are...going...to...hell..."

Then, Oda passes out and the intruder looks down at his victim. He then looks at the dying fire and pulls out a burning log. "Ah!" he exclaims as his hand was burned and he sets fire to the wooden structure of the hut.

The fire catches and it spreads all through the storyteller's hut. The intruder leaves the hut in haste and disappears into the night.

* * *

 **From the author: Oh no! A wonderful moment ruined! Well, not for the feast, at least not yet. Stay tuned for more!**


	13. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

In the dwarf community, the festivities had already begun with songs being played on instruments and the dwarfs distributed all their wine among themselves. A bon-fire was burning in a pit in the center of the square and the dwarfs were dancing around it.

Meanwhile, Meinrad was being groomed by Hartwig, who combed the tangled hair. "Not so hard!" Meinrad shouts as the dwarf was tugging hard on some knots.

"Well, you should groom every so often," Hartwig replies, but Meinrad snorts.

Just then, Helmold and a few dwarfs came and show a new fur coat fit just for Meinrad. It was red with white fur trim.

"Our gift to you, I thought it's time to depart with that old thing you're wearing," Helmold said and Meinrad takes the coat.

He sheds the old fur coat and puts on the new one, it fit. "Hold on, just a minute," Hartwig said and demands that Meinrad lower his face down. Hartwig then does two braids on Meinrad's long beard. "Thought I spruce you up," he adds and shows a mirror.

Then, there came a shout from the festive dwarfs, "Our honored guest is here! Raise your cups for Ishild!" a voice calls out. In the center of the village, Ishild was offered a cup of wine and the dwarfs resume their singing and merriment.

Ishild's blonde hair had been made into a decorative bun and the dwarfs commented on her lovely dress. Ishild's arm began to ache and she began to feel dizzy, but she ignored them. The pain from the bite was minimum, but Ishild rubs it.

"And here is Meinrad! Raise your cups!" the dwarfs shout and Ishild notices Meinrad in his new coat. He notices her and she raises her cup to him. He gives a tilt of his head and then a lute begins to play.

"Go on! Dance with her!" a dwarf shouts to Meinrad and Ishild blushes at the sound of that. Meinrad was also embarrassed at the sound of this, but he moves forward to meet Ishild.

Everyone moves away from the two, making a big circle. Ishild looks into the moon beaming eyes and the lute continues to play. Ishild takes Meinrad's claws into her hands and the two start to dance.

The dwarfs resume their cheerful merriment and they ate and drank, while some join in on the dancing with Ishild and Meinrad. "You look good in red," Ishild whispers to him.

"I think green suits you," he replies and Ishild nods. "Ishild, are you happy here?" he asks.

"Yes, I never felt this happy in a long time, ever since mother died," Ishild answers, but suddenly, she slips. Meinrad catches her, but he also falls onto Ishild.

"Yikes!" some of the dwarfs screech and the playing stops. Meinrad was able to prevent himself from crushing Ishild and moves away from her.

"I'm sorry," Meinrad said, but Ishild shakes her head and chuckles. They stand up and balance themselves on the icy ground, but Ishild slips again and this time, she causes Meinrad to fall on his back.

"Sorry," Ishild said, but Meinrad gets to his feet and stomps on the ground, crushing the ice beneath him. It was then that Ishild started to feel even more dizzy. She touches her forehead, she felt really warm, but she thought it was from the bon-fire.

Meinrad seemed to notice the change in Ishild and moves her away from the bon-fire, but at that moment, Ishild faints. "Ishild!" Meinrad cries out and takes her into his arms.

"Oh, terrible! Terrible!" a dwarf calls out and another shouts, "Where's Eydis?"

Ishild touches her forehead as she pants and sweat trickles down her head. "In here!" Runa demands and Meinrad brings her into a large snow-mound.

"Ishild? What is wrong with her?" Meinrad asks Runa as he lays her down on a bed of fur.

"She feels hot, touch her forehead," the dwarf replies and he does. Ishild was hot to the touch and she continues to pant, but then starts to shiver.

"I feel cold," Ishild said in a weak voice and Runa wraps her up in furs, but also places a cold, wet cloth on her forehead. Just then, Eydis arrives and checks on Ishild. She looks around the woman's body, including her chest and then removes the sleeves of her dress.

"Oh my, look at this," the old dwarf said, revealing the bite wound. It was black and blue and it looked infected. "That is the culprit," Eydis said and asks Ishild, "Who did this to you child?"

Ishild shivers, but she answers, "My...brother...bit me..."

Meinrad takes a clump of hard earth and crushes it in his claws. Rage fills his heart as Ishild lays there, sick and weak. "Why did he bite you?" he asks in an angry voice.

Ishild does not answer, but looks at Meinrad before she closes her eyes. "I best make a potion for this, infections can be deadly," Eydis said and leaves the mound. Runa places another cold cloth on Ishild's forehead, but it causes her to shiver even more.

"I'm sorry Ishild, but you have quite a fever," Runa said to her.

Meinrad stays close beside Ishild and places a claw on her forehead, pressing the cloth down. "Why didn't you tell me about the bite?" he asks, this time in a calmer tone.

"I was afraid that you would go to my village and attack my brother. Then you would be killed; I don't want that to happen to you," Ishild replies, weakly and her body shivers. "I'm so cold," she adds.

Meinrad lies down beside her and holds her, keeping her warm. "Thank you," Ishild whispers before dozing off to sleep.

Outside of the mound, Runa notices that all of the dwarfs had stopped their festivities. "A shame that our honored guest is sick," she heard a dwarf say. Runa finds a bottle of wine and drinks it all.

Most of the dwarfs were drunk and others were snoring, a result of their drinking. Runa felt like sleeping, but she decided to stay awake.

()()()()()()()()()()()

In Ishild's village, the guards were doing patrol, when one came upon Oda's burning hut. "Help! Fire! Fire!" the guard calls out and rings the warning bell. The villagers were aroused from their sleep and hurried to help douse the flames.

The best thing to use was the snow on the ground as the water in the troths were frozen. "Mother!" a man cries out. It was Oda's son and he takes part of the dousing.

In the hut, Oda awoke to see her hut in flames, but she doesn't move. She lies there on the floor, letting everything burn, and waited for herself to be burned to death. The old storyteller knew that Lucifer had won and he was going to succeed even more.

"Ishild..." she said and her mind flashes with the eyes of the intruder. Suddenly, a burning beam falls from the ceiling and crushes the old woman, and the whole hut crumbles to the ground.

"Mother!" Oda's son shouts in horror and the villagers hurry to douse the flames. Some look around the wreckage and discover the woman, she had been crushed to death.

The villagers surround the burned wreckage of the storyteller's hut, including the chief. At Ishild's hut, Gerhard and Gerlach were not aroused by the warning bell or the cries of fire.

However, Gerlach covers his mouth to hide a grim smile and goes to his room. A moaning noise was heard and Gerlach uncovers the baby bear that he hid. Its mouth was tied shut with rope and it balances itself as his left leg had been cut off.

"You miss your mother? Well, you're not going anywhere for a long time," the boy said with an evil grin and covers the cub, again with a heavy blanket. Gerlach looks out of his window to see the smoke from the fire.

He heard cries and shouts and Gerlach could not help it, he smiles at the deed he had done.

* * *

 **From the author: Oh no! So much going on! What does this mean for everyone? Find out next time!**


	14. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

"How could something like this happen?" the chief asks to no one in particular. He looks around the wreckage of Oda's hut and sees the storyteller's body covered in soot.

"Sir," Adalhard comes up to the chief, "There's something wrong," he adds.

"Not now Adalhard, I'm trying to think," Chief Randulf replies, but Adalhard shakes his head.

"Sir, did you see Ishild anywhere?" he asks and the chief looks at him.

"No, why?" Chief Randulf asks the captain.

"She's not with any of the guards and I can't find her anywhere," Adalhard answers. Chief Randulf knew right away that something happened to Ishild and he gathers some of the guards and headed towards her hut.

The chief knocks on the door of the hut and Gerhard answers. "Chief Randulf, what can I-" "Where's Ishild?" the chief interrupts him. At that moment, Gerhard's face turns white.

"I can see it in your eyes, Gerhard, what did you do to her?!" the chief shouts at Gerhard and some of the guards push themselves in. Gerlach comes in and sees the guards and the chief.

"Where is Ishild?!" Chief Randulf shouts, again.

"She was crazy!" Gerlach steps in and the men look at him. "She was acting like a menace and my father had to lock her up!" Gerlach exclaims, but all of the men gave angry looks.

"Nice try boy, but the Ishild we know does not act crazy," Adalhard replies and Gerlach's face falls.

"You locked her up?! Where?!" the chief demands. Gerhard stands to his feet and takes out the key for the room and they wake up the stairs. "My lord, Gerhard it's freezing up here! I hope Ishild has not frozen to death, otherwise I'll have your head!" Chief Randulf shouts at him.

Gerhard unlocks the door to the room and calls out, "Ishild." There was no answer and Chief Randulf takes a torch and steps in. The room was empty and the chief looks at Gerhard with anger on his face.

"Where is she?!" he shouts, but Gerhard shakes his head.

"Sir, look," a guard said and points to the hole in the ceiling. "She may have gotten out through there," the guard adds. Chief Randulf orders the guard to squeeze through the hole and look.

"Saintly Mother of Jesus," the guard whispers and says to the chief, "Sir, there's hoof prints up here, but not of a deer."

"What are you talking about?" Chief Randulf asks.

"That creature Oda usually talked about, it must've gotten Ishild," the guard answers. The chief orders some of the guards to look around the grounds, the meadow, and the edge of the forest for Ishild.

Some of the guards on horseback look around the forest and notice the giant hoof-prints in the snow. One of them hurries back to the chief and tells him of what he saw.

"Then the legend must be true," Chief Randulf said to himself and turns to Adalhard, "Gather all of your men, bring chains, and whatever weapons you have," he orders and points to Gerhard and Gerlach, "They are coming with us. If the beast killed Ishild, I will kill it, and then execute them."

Both Gerhard and Gerlach were ordered to walk with the guards and the chief gets on his horse. They follow the hoof-prints into the forest and were gone.

()()()()()()()()()()

In the dwarf community, the dwarfs were asleep or making rounds. Others were staying by the bon-fire, feeding it twigs and leaves. The last of the wine was gone and some of the dwarfs were drunk and acting mischievous.

In the snow-mound, Ishild shivers and Meinrad holds her tight, trying to keep her warm. He touches her forehead, again, her fever was strong. "I'm not going to lose you, not like this," Meinrad said to her.

Ishild hears him and opens her eyes. "I'm sorry Meinrad, but there are some things you can't save. All things eventually die," she said and coughs.

"Don't you dare say that," Meinrad replies in a demanding tone. "I believe...I believe you are the reason for why I am alive," he adds and Ishild stares at him. "You are brave, strong, and compassionate. That is what I love about you," Meinrad said to her.

Ishild takes a clump of his coat and holds tight on it and then buries her face into it.

Outside of the dwarf village, Eydis was coming back with the potion, when she sees lights from torches and sounds of men coming from behind her. She hides behind a tree and peeks out. A band of humans were trekking through the forest and they appeared to be following something.

Eydis knew that they were heading for the dwarf village and she had to stop them, somehow. Just then, something clamps her mouth shut and she turns to see Helmold.

"They must be from Ishild's village," he said to the old dwarf. Eydis thought of a plan and gives the potion to Helmold.

"Take this to Ishild and pour it over her bite wound. Then, get everyone ready for a fight if possible. I'll try to hold them off," Eydis orders him.

"But what if they kill you?" Helmold asks, but Eydis demands for him to go and he digs his way through the snow towards the village. Eydis then begins to call out to the humans.

"Turn back!" she calls out and that got their attention.

"What is that?" one of the guards ask and then Eydis appears before them.

"Turn back!" she repeats and screeches at them like a hawk.

"What in heavens name is that?!" the chief demands, but Eydis continues to show aggressiveness towards them.

In the village, Helmold jumps out of his mound and begins to shout, "Humans! Heading this way!" The dwarfs jump to attention and Helmold rushes toward the snow-mound where Ishild and Meinrad were.

"Meinrad! Humans are coming!" Helmold cries out upon entering.

Ishild looks at him, "The chief?" she asks, but the dwarf does not answer and pours the potion over her wound. Ishild reacts as it stings and Meinrad begins to growl and prepares to leave the mound.

"Where are you going?" Ishild asks him.

"I'm not going to let them take you back," Meinrad answers and turns to Helmold, "Tell the dwarfs to arm themselves, but they must not fight unless the humans prove a threat," he orders and the dwarf leaves.

Eydis growls and snarls at the humans and snaps at the horses. "Shoot it!" Gerlach shouts.

"Silence boy!" Adalhard demands, but then, one of the guards draws an arrow and fires. The arrow hits Eydis in the chest and she falls over, dead.

Some of the dwarfs had seen this happen and they hurry back to their village. "They killed Eydis!" one of them cries out.

Meinrad and Ishild had heard this and Meinrad looks at her. "They will have to-" "Meinrad, please!" Ishild pleads with him, "I don't want you to die! I can't let you die!"

"And I can't let them take you back. What if your father or brother kills you? I cannot live with that," Meinrad said, "If I die, at least I will die for you."

"Why are you doing this?" Ishild asks. The next thing she knew, Meinrad kisses her and Ishild's eyes widened and her face turns red. Meinrad then leaves the mound and bolts the door, just as the humans set foot into the village. "Meinrad!" Ishild cries out and breaks down in tears.

* * *

 **From the author: Oh no! What will the outcome be for everyone?! Find out next time!**


	15. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

Meinrad steps out of the mound, blotting the door behind him, and ignores Ishild's cries as best he could. The villagers and their chief would have to go through him first before they take his love away.

The dwarfs were hiding behind their snow-mounds with weapons in their hands. "Do not harm them, unless they pose a threat," Meinrad orders them.

The lights from the torches were edging closer and Meinrad walks a few steps and then, the humans appear and one of them cries, "My God!"

Meinrad growls at the humans, his yellow eyes beaming, and he stomps on the ground. The humans look at the creature, arrows drawn, and the chief shouts, "Where is Ishild?!"

Meinrad refuses to answer and instead, roars at them, causing the horses to rear up. "Chain it!" the chief orders. Ishild hears this and begins to look for a new way out. She then starts to dig through the snow and then, a bow falls on top of her.

It was Meinrad's bow and there was the quiver. Ishild takes them and resumes her digging.

Outside, Meinrad fights to get the chains off of him, but the humans had lassoed his arms and his neck. He snarls, but then, the humans pull tight on the chains, forcing him to the ground.

The dwarfs were ready to fight, but Meinrad shouts at them, "Don't!"

Chief Randulf gets off his horse and takes his sword out. He raises it over Meinrad and shouts, "This is for-" Suddenly, an arrow hits his sword and it falls out of his hands.

"Get back!" Ishild demands, showing herself and draws another arrow. "Don't you dare kill him!" she shouts at the chief.

"Ishild! You're alive?!" Adalhard exclaims. Ishild does not answer and looks at Meinrad. He looked surprised and stares into Ishild's eyes.

Just then, Gerhard pushes his way through, having gotten out of his bonds, and takes the chief's sword. He pushes his daughter out of the way and raises the sword over Meinrad. "NO!" Ishild screams and takes a sword from a guard.

She blocks her father's blow. "Ishild, are you out of your mind?!" Gerhard shouts at his daughter, but Ishild kicks him to the ground.

"I will not let you kill Meinrad," Ishild said and everyone stares at her. "Listen to me, the stories Oda told us are true, but Meinrad is not the creature you should be hunting for," Ishild explains to them.

Just then, the dwarfs emerge from their hiding places, some jump on Gerhard, and held up their weapons. "All of you! Calm down!" Ishild orders and they stand down.

Gerlach steps forward and shouts, "You are with this monster?! And its minions?!"

"Meinrad is not a monster!" Ishild shouts back at her brother, "You're the monster!" she adds and that made Gerlach angry.

Just then, a noise was heard and everyone looks to see a big brown bear, the mother bear! "Big mama bear!" a dwarf cries out. The bear looks at the humans and sniffs the air.

"She's looking for her cub!" Ishild said to everyone and that's when the bear charges at them. The humans and the dwarfs fight back, but the bear prove to be very powerful and strong.

Ishild looks for her brother as the bear scatters the humans and the dwarfs. She finds him scurrying away from the fight and grabs him. "Where is her cub?!" she demands.

"I have no idea what you're-" Ishild slaps him and tightens her grip on him.

"Tell me or I will feed you to the mother bear! You are behind everything! The cruel pranks! And father let's you do whatever you want!" Ishild shouts in his face and reveals the burn marks on his hand. "Now tell me!" she angrily shouts.

There was fire in the boy's eyes and they were flames of hate. Ishild stares hard into his eyes and refuses to loosen her grip. "In my room, he's under a blanket," Gerlach finally speaks.

"Helmold! Hartwig! I need you! NOW!" Ishild calls out for the dwarfs and they appear. "Go to my hut in my village, go to my brother's room and you'll find the cub. Bring him back here and hurry," Ishild explains to them.

In a flash, Helmold and Hartwig started to dig through the snow and were gone.

The bear continues to fight with the humans and the dwarfs, but then sets her sights on the chief. "Come on you! I'll take you with my bare hands!" Chief Randulf shouts at her.

Just before he could throw a punch, the mother bear slaps him, sending him to the ground. Ishild shoots arrows at the mother bear, but she does not die, and charges at Ishild.

The mother bear roars at Ishild and she lets out a scream. Meinrad, with all of his strength, lifts himself off the ground, and breaks loose of his captors, but the chains were still bound to him.

Meinrad charges at the mother bear and roars at her. The bear roars back and the two creatures began to fight. Meinrad pushes the bear away, but the bear claws at his coat, and scratches his face.

"Meinrad!" Ishild cries out, but the two continue to fight. The mother bear tries to break through and get to Ishild, but Meinrad prevents her from doing so.

Suddenly, the bear slaps Meinrad to the ground, close to Ishild, and Ishild draws an arrow. "Mama bear!" a voice calls out. Everyone turns to see Helmold and Hartwig riding on Willahelm, with the cub.

The cub cries out for his mother and she turns to see him. Forgetting about the fight with Meinrad, the mother bear walks up to Hartwig, who carried the three-legged cub to her. He lets the cub go and the poor baby limps over to his mother.

The mother bear takes her cub by the scruff of his neck and calmly walks away and disappears into the early morning light. Ishild and Meinrad look at each other and everything was quiet, until Runa shouts, "Look out!"

Ishild and Meinrad turn to see Gerlach, a sword in his hands, and he prepares to strike at Meinrad. "NO!" a cry was heard and Ishild steps in front of her brother. Gerlach strikes, the blade plunges into Ishild's side, but she refuses to stand down.

"ISHILD!" Meinrad cries out and he strikes at Gerlach, sending him flying through the air, and he hits the ground.

"Bind him!" the chief shouts, pointing to Gerlach, and the guards tie his hands.

"Let me go! It was not my fault! She stepped in front of that beast!" Gerlach shouts, but then, a guard gags him. Gerhard, having witnessed what his son did, falls to his knees, and begins to laugh.

"He's lost his mind," Adalhard said and the guards bind Gerhard, too.

Meinrad holds Ishild in his arms, she was bleeding heavily from the wound, and blood streams out of her mouth. The blood began to stain Meinrad's coat, but he didn't care; the love of his life was dying in front of him.

The chief looks at Ishild and at Meinrad. "Get out!" the creature orders, "GET OUT!" he shouts, again at the guards and the chief. They begin to leave, taking Gerlach and Gerhard by force, and Meinrad looks at the boy who harmed Ishild.

Gerlach had a face full of hate and Meinrad growls at him before they disappear into the forest. The first rays of dawn touch the sky and the snowy ground, Meinrad looks at Ishild, her eyes glued to his. She was still alive, but she will not be for long.

"Why Ishild? Why did you sacrifice yourself for me?" Meinrad asks and the dwarfs began to circle around them.

"I believe... you know why," she replies and Meinrad's heart skips a beat. Everything he had done to protect Ishild had failed and she had paid for his mistakes.

"I don't want you to die," Meinrad said, tears flowing down his face.

"As I said... all things...die...eventually..." Ishild coughs, spraying blood all over Meinrad's coat. He places a claw on her cheek and watches the light fade from her eyes. Meinrad gently closes her eye lids and kisses her dead lips.

He gently lays Ishild's body down and sees the bow she had given him. His heartbreak turned to fury and he takes the bow and hits it against a tree until it breaks into pieces.

Meinrad claws at the bark of some trees and attacks the ground, sending snow and dirt into the air. The chains rattle with his every move.

Runa, Hartwig, Helmold, and the other dwarfs watch as Meinrad lets out all of his rage until he collapses to the ground. He then lets out a bloodcurdling cry that could be heard for many miles.

Meinrad lets out his breath in labored snorts and the cold air freezes it. His mind flashes with images of the one person who killed Ishild, his love. "Gerlach," he whispers and he growls in a rage.

* * *

 **From the author: Please, don't hate me! There is a reason for Ishild's death and I hope everyone understands why. There's plenty more on the way! Please leave reviews.**


	16. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

The Baemi village was in an uproar. The men had gathered in the chief's hut where Gerlach and Gerhard were bound and gagged as ordered by the chief. Gerlach's face was empty of emotion and Gerhard had to be carried as he clearly lost his mind.

Both of them were to face judgement by the chief and of the other council members of the village.

"They must die!" Adalhard said to Chief Randulf, "Gerlach killed his own sister and Gerhard just stood by and watched!"

Chief Randulf did not want to be reminded of the incident; Ishild was brutally murdered by her own brother, who the chief believed to be possessed by the devil.

"Ishild was right, Gerlach was behind everything in this village! He must be executed at once!" Adalhard said, again to the chief.

"Oda did warn us about Gerlach, he is indeed possessed by the devil!" a council member said.

"Enough! Quiet please!" Chief Randulf shouts at them and they went silent. "I must think of what is the right way to execute them. Either hang them or have drawn and quartered."

Gerlach tries to speak through the gag, but no one wanted to hear what he had to say.

"Let me think, give me some time alone," the chief demands and he retires to his quarters.

()()()()()()()()()()()

In the forest, Meinrad pranced about, thinking of how to achieve his revenge. Ishild's body had been laid on a stone table in a mound and Meinrad had covered the entrance with stones.

He was overcome with grief and fury. "Meinrad, Ishild would not want you to kill the boy, her brother," Runa said to him.

Meinrad looks at his adoptive mother with anger in his eyes. "He killed her!" he snaps at Runa. "The boy must die and I will kill him with my own hands!" he shouts.

"How are you going to do that? The village might be heavily guarded and maybe the chief wants to execute the boy himself," Helmold said.

"He's right, we'll be dead before we set foot in there," a dwarf informs Meinrad.

Meinrad began to think, the chains were still tight around his wrists and neck. He ignored them and he snorts heavily.

"I would sell my soul to the devil," he whispers to himself.

Just then, the sky grew cloudy and darkness fell over the forest. It grew much colder than before and snow began to fall.

"What just happened?" Hartwig asks, but no one had an answer.

Meinrad knew something was wrong and he looks around, wondering what lingered in the darkness.

Then, he began to hear the flapping of wings above him and he looks to see a winged figure flying above the tree line.

The creature descended upon the group and Meinrad got a good look at it. It had leathery bat-wings, with dark-red skin. It had horns, much like Meinrad's, but they were shorter, and its eyes blazed like the fires of Hell.

"What...who are you?!" Runa shrieks and Meinrad growls at the creature.

"You summonded me," it answers and points at Meinrad. "Many call me Lucifer, the fallen angel," it adds.

"The Devil?" Hartwig asks. The creature laughs a horrific laugh and a serpentine-like tongue slithers out of its mouth.

"I am here to offer you a deal," Lucifer said to Meinrad.

"What is the deal?" Meinrad asks without even thinking first.

"You want revenge, so I will make you and your companions immortal. You will not be killed by sword or arrow and you will carry out your revenge in one fell-swoop," Lucifer explains to him.

Meinrad could no believe his ears; this deal seemed too good to be true. He would be able to kill Gerlach and his revenge would be granted.

Then, Lucifer shows him a scroll and Meinrad takes it. "What is it?" he asks.

"Your contract," Lucifer answers, "Your soul for immortality. I just need a signature."

"Meinrad, wait!" Runa shouts at him, "I don't trust him! You just can't take the risk!"

Meinrad's heart was heavy with grief and he refused to listen to Runa. He wanted to kill the boy who murdered Ishild, his love. He also felt that the whole village was responsible for letting Gerlach kill Ishild. He would let the dwarfs kill the villagers in whatever way they wanted.

He unrolls the scroll and sees the line at the bottom where his signature would go. "My companions and I will not die?" Meinrad asks Lucifer.

"No, you'll be completely immortal," Lucifer answers, "Oh, but I do prefer you bring the boy you want to kill to me. I will open the portal to Hell and the boy and his father will suffer for all eternity," he adds and Meinrad looks at the signature line.

Just then, he felt something prick the fleshly part of of his claw and a few drops of blood fell on the scroll.

"That will be all," Lucifer said and he takes the scroll. "Now, let us begin," he adds and looks at Meinrad and the dwarfs. He then grins and then fire surrounds them.

The wind blew violently and it fuels the roaring fire. The dwarfs, particularly Runa, were afraid of what would happen to them, but Meinrad felt the flames of hatred course through him.

The images of Ishild dying in his arms flashed in his mind. Then, Gerlach's voice was heard, "It was not my fault! She stepped in front of that beast!"

Meinrad felt the need to roar out his rage and he did so. His roar was heard all across the forest, scaring away any living creature residing there.

The fire dies down and Lucifer looks at Meinrad and the newly transformed dwarfs. Meinrad's eyes were no longer shining like the moon, instead they were red like blood.

The creature then roars at his minions, it was time for them to carry out their master's revenge.

* * *

 **From the author: This is not good! What will happen next?! Well, you will to find out next time!**


	17. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

Nighttime fell upon the mountains and the Baemi village was preparing for the feast of Saint Nicholas, which would be the next morning. Chief Randulf knew that this year was not going to be festive, mostly due to the people's heartbreak over the death of Ishild that very morning.

Many of the villagers insisted that Gerlach and Gerhard be executed immediately. Chief Randulf wanted to punish the two in the right way, but he wasn't sure how.

"Sir, just have the executioner chop their heads off!" Adalhard said to the chief.

Before Chief Randulf could answer, the sound of booming thunder was heard and the wind picked up. "Thunder?" the chief asked and then, all the torches in the chief's hut went out.

Both men looked outside to see all the torches go out and snow began to fall in thick flakes. "Something is wrong," the chief said to Adalhard. The captain dared himself to open the door and outside, there were shadows moving about.

In the square, a man who had just left the food storage hut saw a figure a few feet away. It looked small in height and the man dared himself to go look at it. Suddenly, the figure leaps up at him and the man falls to the ground.

The dwarf laughed at the prank he pulled and he runs off. The dwarf returns to his master, Meinrad who was just outside the village. "Kill the chief and a few of the guards, but I want the boy and his father alive," Meinrad orders his minions.

The dwarfs obeyed and they hurry into the village, holding up their weapons and torches. "For Ishild!" some of them shout and started to bang on some doors.

A woman screams when the dwarfs barge into her hut and the other dwarfs did the same thing. They then started to ransack the huts, looking for Gerlach and Gerhard. Adalhard gathers all of his men and they arm themselves with bows and arrows and swords.

The dwarfs only laughed when the guards shot arrows at them. Some of the dwarfs jump on the guards and started to bite them with their sharp teeth. The guards cry out in horror before they were killed.

Meinrad then enters the village and looks into the open huts. He saw some families hiding and they stare at him with horrified looks, but he did not care about that. He then walks to the square, where the dwarfs continue their carnage.

Several of the guards lie dead and Meinrad notices Adalhard fighting with one of the dwarfs. "Stop!" Meinrad orders the dwarf and Adalhard sees the creature. He collapses to his feet and tries to scream.

Meinrad grabs Adalhard by the cuff of his coat and hoists him off the ground. Meinrad snorts hot breath and shows Adalhard his teeth. "Where is the boy?" Meinrad demands. Adalhard does not answer and Meinrad places a sharp claw on his neck. "I will spare your life once you tell me where he is," the creature said, again.

Adalhard shakes his head, "I want to kill him as much as you do," he said to Meinrad. The creature snorts in his face and pricks his claw into Adalhard's cheek, drawing blood.

"I will give you one last chance, where is the boy?" Meinrad said in a deep, cold voice.

Adalhard refuses to answer and Meinrad opens his mouth wide, saliva drips from his teeth and he edges close to the captain. "Wait!" Adalhard shouts and Meinrad stops. "You saved my life, didn't you?" he asks.

"Ishild saved your life, not me," Meinrad replies.

"Yes, but..." Adalhard tried to think of a proper word.

"I am taking Gerlach and his father to Hell. I want them to spend an eternity going through pain and suffering," Meinrad said to Adalhard. "Think, would you rather execute them first? Or let them experience the agony that we all suffer from?" Meinrad asks him.

Adalhard thought long and hard, he wanted Gerlach to suffer, and he gives in. He points to the chief's hut and Meinrad releases him. "You really loved her," Adalhard said, but Meinrad ignores him and walks toward the chief's hut.

The snow and wind was fierce now and the thunder boomed across the sky. Meinrad passes a few dead guards, leaving hoof-prints in the snow, and the dwarfs let their master pass.

Meinrad tries to open the door, but it was bolted tight. "Shall we burn it down?" a dwarf asks.

"No," Meinrad answers and looks up. He takes a leap and lands on the roof. There, he saw the chimney and looks down. No fire was burning and Meinrad dives head-first down the chimney. The stone cracked as Meinrad moves down and makes it to the bottom.

His head emerges and he looks around. A few guards had surrounded their chief and the two prisoners. They held up their swords, but Meinrad roars at them. Some of the guards turn to run and when they opened the door, the dwarfs stormed in.

"Kill them!" Chief Randulf shouts at the guards, but they couldn't. The dwarfs overpower them and killed them. The chief arms himself as Meinrad walks over to him. The creature grabs Chief Randulf by the neck and snarls.

"Here, put him in here," a dwarf said, showing Meinrad a large sack.

"No! Let my father go!" Amalric shouts at them, but Meinrad ignores him and stuffs Chief Randulf into the sack. He turns to face Gerlach and Gerhard and hate fills his senses.

Gerlach stares at Meinrad and he struggles to break free. Meinrad takes the boy and stuffs him in the sack, along with his father. Meinrad hoists the sack and carries it on his back. He and the dwarfs leave the chief's hut and they walk through the village, looking at the terrified people.

Some of the dwarfs resumed their mischievous ways and terrified them even more. "You best be good for goodness' sake," some of them said to the young children. Meinrad and the dwarfs leave the village, having left a scene of death and destruction.

* * *

 **From the author: And so begins a horrifying tradition...**


	18. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

Meinrad and the dwarfs trekked through the forest, with Gerlach fighting in the sack and muttering something. One of the dwarfs jump on the sack and raises his weapon. "Don't!" Meinrad roars at the dwarf.

"Stop kicking me boy!" the chief shouts, "And let me out!" he adds.

Meinrad stops and puts the sack down, then opens it, revealing his captives. The chief was about to jump out, but Meinrad takes him by the neck and hoists him out. "Why are you doing this to me?!" Chief Randulf chokes out.

"Don't play stupid," one of the dwarfs said, "You were planning on..." he stops and lets Meinrad speak.

"You were planning on taking Ishild away from me," the creature snarls at the chief and his long tongue slithers out.

"Ishild?" the chief asks, but then adds, "I wanted to protect her."

"From what? From her family? Or from me?" Meinrad asks, angrily.

The chief was silent for a minute and then answers, "From all the evil in this world. Ishild's father was neglecting her and he let his son abuse her!" Meinrad had listened to every word the chief had said and the chief adds more, "I didn't want to cage her, I would give her freedom, as I do with my daughters. I am sorry."

Meinrad lets him go and the chief breathes heavily. The creature stares at Chief Randulf with his blood-red eyes and as if controlled by another force, Meinrad pulls out something from his coat.

It was a bauble and Meinrad sees the inscription ' Gruss Vom Krampus'. Then, the ground begins to shake and fire spews out from a hole and Lucifer appears. "My God, there is a devil," Chief Randulf said in horror.

Suddenly, the chief screams as something beneath him grabs him and pulls him under and he was gone. Meinrad looks at Lucifer, who chuckles, "Don't worry, he'll wake up back in his bed."

Meinrad then turns to face his other two captives and the dwarfs pull them out of the sack. They look at them, Gerhard appeared to be out of sorts and one of the dwarfs remove the gags from his and Gerlach's mouth.

"Let me go!" Gerlach demands, struggling to break free.

"And why should we?" a dwarf asks and then Meinrad hoists the boy by the scuff of his coat.

"You have time to apologize, boy," Lucifer said to Gerlach. The boy just sniffs and looks at Meinrad.

"Apologize for what? I didn't do anything wrong," he replies and Meinrad's blood boiled inside.

"Nothing wrong?! You killed Ishild!" Meinrad roars at Gerlach. He wanted to kill the boy, but sending him to Hell would satisfy him even more.

"You were in love with her?!" Gerlach asks and spits in Meinrad's face. "You and my sister?! You two would've made a couple! An idiot girl with an ugly beast!" he shouts.

Meinrad had heard enough and he takes Gerlach over the burning pit and the boy begins to panic. Meinrad pulls him close to his face and snarls, "This will be the last thing you see, my face! And the one emotion you will feel is of pain, the pain of the village, the pain of the forest animals you tortured, and the pain in my heart!"

The dwarfs begin to laugh and cheer as Meinrad hovers the boy over the pit. The boy tried to kick at Meinrad, but then, the creature throws the boy into the pit and Gerlach disappears into the fire.

Meinrad points to Gerhard and the dwarfs hoist him up and throw him in the pit. Both the boy and his father were gone, having been consumed by the fires of Hell, and the pit is covered over.

Meinrad's eyes return to its moonlight yellow and he looks at Lucifer. "Well done," he said.

"I feel relieved, I can finally rest in peace," Meinrad replies, but then, Lucifer begins to laugh grimly.

"Rest in peace?! Who said anything about that?!" the devil asks and Meinrad looks at him confused.

"I sent Gerlach and his father to Hell, as you said so. I did it for Ishild and now she-" Lucifer silences Meinrad with another grim laugh.

"You did it for love?! Now you never said anything about that!" Lucifer shouts at the creature and then reveals the contract. "You sold your soul to me for revenge and it has been achieved. Here is the deal, your soul belongs to me and you work for me!"

Meinrad's heart stops beating for a moment and stares at Lucifer. "Now, here is what I want you to do, I want you to gather every child and bring them to me," the devil said, his tongue lashing out, "And give their families these baubles," he adds and he reveals a bauble with the inscription 'Gruss Vom Krampus'.

"That is your new name, Krampus, you are my slave for all eternity," Lucifer said, coldly. Meinrad collapses to the ground and the dwarfs begin to screech, more out of fear.

Lucifer laughs grimly and Meinrad cries out in despair. "Ishild, I'm sorry!" he shouts at the night sky and tears flow down his cheeks.

"Meinrad, what have you done?!" Runa cries out and the other dwarfs cry out in misery.

"I am so sorry," Meinrad replies and more tears fall, "I wanted to avenge Ishild, but I...I'm so selfish! I did it for my own gain!" Meinrad cries out even more and stares up at the sky.

Just then, the darkness was illuminated with light and Lucifer begins to shriek. "What is this?!" he shouts and the light dims to reveal a figure in white and red robes. He had a snow-white beard and his blue eyes were full of warmth.

"Saint Nicholas! What are you doing here?!" Lucifer shouts angrily at the holy being.

"Lucifer, you were always a cruel trickster," the saint said and points to the devil. The contract floats toward Saint Nicholas and he takes it into his hand.

"What are you doing?! He's mine!" Lucifer shouts, but Saint Nicholas scoffs at him.

"Be gone demon!" Saint Nicholas orders and points a finger at Lucifer. The Devil transforms into a snake and slithers into the night.

Meinrad shuts his eyes and holds out his claws, "Holy Saint Nicholas, I don't deserve to be bathed in this light," he said to him. The dwarfs scurry away, taking cover in the darkness.

"Meinrad, do not be ashamed of the deed you have done," the saint replies and walks over to the creature. "What you have done to Gerlach was justifiable, he was too wicked to even exist," he adds and Meinrad looks at him.

"And I know what lies in your heart. Your love for Ishild is much stronger than your hatred towards man and her love for you was powerful enough to protect you," Saint Nicholas continues to say. "You see, Ishild sent me to offer you a way out of this curse," he adds.

"What?" Meinrad asks and looks into the saint's eyes.

"You know that I reward good children, but there are wicked children in this world, too. Like Gerlach, they must be punished, but I can't bring myself to do that. Which is why I have been searching for someone who would carry out punishments to the naughty children, and if necessary, their parents as well," Saint Nicholas explains.

"But my soul belongs to Hell, is there a way to break the contract?" Meinrad asks, but Saint Nicholas shakes his head.

"Lucifer's powers are too strong for me to break, but I can alter the contract," the saint replies and Meinrad listens. Then, the scroll is illuminated and Saint Nicholas speaks, "Meinrad, your soul may be bound to Hell, but there is a light of hope for you. You will not serve Lucifer for eternity; instead, you will serve me for two thousand years.

"During the festivities of the twelfth month, you and your minions will carry out punishments to the naughty children of this world. As a reminder of their wicked deeds, you will leave them a bauble, so they will remember you and to always honor the festivities of this month.

"As for your name, as the Devil has made one for you, you will be forever known as Krampus, the Shadow of Saint Nicholas," the holy being said and the scroll disappears before them.

Meinrad, now known as Krampus looks at Saint Nicholas and fresh tears flow down his cheeks. "Um, I have a question," a dwarf asks, "What happens when the two thousand years are up?"

"Meinrad will regain his soul and reunite with Ishild in Heaven and all of you will be free. However, I must warn you, things will change dramatically through the years, some good, some bad, but you will carry out the deed until the end of the two thousand years," Saint Nicholas replies and Krampus bows to him.

"Thank you, I will not disappoint you or Ishild," the creature said and he looks up at the sky once more before he and his minions disappear into the night.

* * *

 **From the author: How's this for the beginning of a new holiday? Meinrad (aka Krampus) has found a new purpose and he will be doing it for love. There will be plenty more chapters coming! See you soon!**

 **Please leave reviews.**


	19. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18**

 _Salzburg, Austria, December 2000 (apx. 1077 years later)_

The years rolled by for Krampus and his minions, but it did not feel like that over 1000 years had passed. Krampus had witnessed the many changes in the world; the village where Ishild once resided now became a city, snuggle deep in the Alps.

Krampus had witnessed some bad changes as well as some good ones. Every since he took Gerlach and Gerhard, Krampus became widely known and many believed him to be the evil counterpart of Saint Nicholas, which he was. However, many people appreciated Krampus and would have celebrations dedicating to the Shadow of Saint Nicholas.

Over the years, Krampus and his minions would carry out punishments on the naughty children and even the adults who lost their faith or did not fully appreciate the festivities of December.

As for the bad changes, they were horrific for Krampus to understand. The country, now known as Austria experienced a civil war in the 1930's and afterward, the country fell under the Nazi regime. Despite the strong belief of Krampus, the top leaders of the Nazi regime banned the celebration of the goat-like creature, calling him "pure evil".

It was not until after the fall of the Third Reich, the festivities for Krampus and Saint Nicholas were fully restored.

On this day December 5, the Krampusnacht or Krampus Night was in full swing. Salzburg, as well as many Austrian cities, towns, and villages, including those in Germany had their own celebrations for Krampus.

"Mom, I can't see them!" a young girl cries out as she struggles to get through the crowd. A parade was in full swing; young men were dressed as the goat-creature, terrifying the children with their costumes. Many of the children and adults admired the hard-work these young men had done for their costumes.

"Let us through please!" a woman begs the crowd as she pushes a wheelchair. The crowd looks at the occupant in the wheelchair, a young teenage girl cuddled in a heavy coat.

Kristen Sonnen was a sixteen year old sick with cancer. She and her family had came from their home of Minneapolis to visit their Austrian grandparents for the holidays.

"Why are we here?" Kristen's cousin, Hannah asks her parents.

"Your grandparents want to spend time with Kristen, you know she is sick," Hannah's mom replies. Kristen hated the cancer and she also hated the treatment she had to take for it. What was worse that the chemotherapy was expensive and the family's insurance had run out, causing Kristen's parents to ask other family members to pitch in financially.

It was possible that this would be Kristen's last Christmas as her illness had advanced and her family could not get any more money. Kristen once had blonde hair, but she had to shave it for her chemotherapy. She had dazzling blue eyes, much like her grandmother's.

The crowd parted ways for the family and they watch as the multiple Krampuses paraded through the street. Many were different, but they were hairy with demonic faces. Many of them had chains with different size bells and they rattle with every step. Others carried torches or birch branches, which Krampus was said to use to punish the naughty children.

Kristen had been told stories about the creature and she was fascinated with the legend. She wanted to see the Krampus parade before she passes and her wish was granted tonight.

The multiple Krampuses march through the street, some coming up to the crowd to terrify them. One Krampus went up to Kristen and he stares at her. Kristen was not sure what to do, but she raises her hands up and tries her best to put on a scary face.

The Krampus scurries away, as if terrified of her, but then speaks in German. "He said he will remember this night because of you," her grandmother translates. The family watches the parade and it ends.

The Sonnen family returns to the grandparents' house, where they proceed with the festivities of the night. "Do you think Krampus exists?" Kristen's young sister Ashley asks.

"Oh he does," their grandmother replies.

Kristen goes to her bedroom with slow steps, she was tired, and the Krampus parade had lifted her spirits. Before she could open the door to her room, she hears some noises coming from the room next to her, which was her cousins' room.

Rowan and her twin brother Travis shared the room and Kristen was curious as to what was going on. "I hate it here," Travis said, "Why can't Kristen just die?"

Kristen's stomach drops when she heard Travis say that. "Will you be quiet, Kristen will die, and no one will suspect where we got the money," Rowan said. Weeks before, the two promised to hold a fundraiser for Kristen's chemotherapy, but they said it proved fruitless as they got only one-hundred dollars.

"Did you count the money?" Travis asks and Kristen listens.

"Yeah, we're filthy rich! I stopped counting at twenty-two thousand!" Rowan replies and Kristen was shocked. Her cousins had actually lied about the amount of money they received from the fundraiser.

"All in cash! Man, I can buy a car with that money!" Travis said.

"We just have to play along until Kristen passes, then we're free to spend it!" Rowan replies and they started to laugh.

Kristen goes into her room and collapses on the bed and starts to cry. Her cousins did not care about her, they just wanted her to die. Kristen wanted them to be punished for their greed and that's when it hits her.

She sits up in a prayer position and speaks aloud, "Krampus, my cousins have lied, they stole the money that I need for my chemotherapy. Please, punish them."

Somewhere in the forest outside of the city, Krampus had heard the young girl's prayer. He summons his minions and they knew that they were going to punish some naughty children. They prepared themselves and they head out towards Salzburg, where a blizzard fell upon the city.

Kristen realized that the power went out and it was dreadfully cold inside the house. She coughs and her mom comes in. "Honey, we're gathered downstairs," she said and takes her daughter by the arm.

"Mom, I have to tell you something," Kristen said and her mom listens. "I heard Rowan and Travis talking and they said they really have twenty-thousand dollars from the fundraiser," she explains.

"Really?" her mom asks, "Well, we'll see about that."

The two walk down the steps and they went into the living room where the family was gathered by the fire. Kristen sits down on the sofa and her mom looks at Rowan and Travis.

"Is there something you want to share with us?" she asks the two.

"What are you talking about?" Rowan asks in return.

"Kelly, what's going on?" their mom asks.

"Kristen said she heard these two saying that they lied about the fundraiser. They said they have twenty-thousand dollars," Kelly replies and the twins' faces showed horror.

"Is it true?" the twins' father asks.

"No, we only made one-hundred," Travis lies and Rowan nods.

"Don't lie to us! Where is the rest of the money?" Kelly snaps at them.

The twins' refuse to answer and they look at Kristen with anger in their eyes. "Krampus will be coming to punish you," the grandmother said to them.

"Oh for crying out loud! Krampus does not exist!" Travis shouts at them, "We earned that money fair and square!"

"You mean you stole it!" Kristen's father yells at them.

"Travis and Rowan! I am surprised at you two!" their father shouts at them, "You give Kristen the money right now!"

"No way!" Rowan shouts, "Why can't she just die?!"

"Rowan, how dare you say that to your cousin!" their mother shouts, "Apologize to her!" The twins refused and turn their heads away. "You two are grounded forever!" their mother informs them.

The evening went on, the twins refused to apologize to Kristen, and they refused to hand over the missing cash. Kristen had never seen so much hate in them. The family falls asleep in the living room, trying to keep warm.

Krampus arrives at the house and his minions open the unlocked door. They quietly storm into the house, looking for the twins, and they discover them in the living room.

In a flash, Krampus takes the two and puts them in the sack. The twins awoke with a start and begin to cry out, but the family was not aroused, except for Kristen. She sees the creatures leave the house.

Kristen hurries after them and keeps close behind them. They left the city and enter the forest. Kristen struggles to keep up, but they stop and Kristen sees a burning pit.

"Wait!" she cries out and the creatures turn to face her. "What are you going to do to them?" she asks Krampus. The creature looks at her and puts down his sack and walks up to Kristen.

Kristen remains still, but she coughs and falls to her knees. Krampus' heart began to ache, he knew that this girl was dying, and his mind flashes with the images of Ishild dying in his arms.

"They need to be punished as you told me to," he said in a deep voice.

"Are you sending them to Hell?" Kristen asks and he nods. Then, Kristen's coughing got worse and Krampus edges closer to her.

"You shouldn't be out here," he said and holds out a claw. She takes it and Krampus helps her up, but she collapses, again. "Your time is nearing its end," he adds and Kristen nods.

"Let us out!" Travis shouts in the sack and the minions open it. The twins jump out, but the dwarfs bound them tight. They tried to scream at Krampus, but they couldn't find their voices.

"You two still have a chance to apologize," Krampus said to them.

"You got to be kidding, we were just messing with her!" Travis replies, pointing to Kristen. "We didn't do anything wrong!" he adds. Kristen's heart breaks into pieces and Krampus walks up to them.

They edged closer to the pit and Krampus roars at the twins and they fell in. The pit closes up, sending the twins to Hell. Kristen collapses and Krampus comes to her side.

"It's all right, you see I am not afraid of dying anymore," Kristen said weakly.

"Oh, Kristen," he whispers and takes pity on Kristen. "Saint Nicholas, please, give this girl more time. She deserves to be with her family for one final Christmas before she passes," Krampus speaks up to the sky.

Then, he hears the sounds of sleigh bells and he sees the silhouettes of the reindeer and Saint Nicholas' sleigh passing by the moon. Krampus returns Kristen to her grandparents' place and lies her down on her bed.

Before he leaves, he places the bauble on the bedside table. "Merry Christmas Kristen," he whispers to the sick girl and leaves the house.

Morning came and Kristen awakes to see the bauble on the table. "So he does exist," she said to herself and she gets up to go down to the living room. To her surprise, she sees her family gathered around and they see her.

"Sweetheart, your aunt and uncle has raised twenty-thousand dollars for your chemotherapy!" her mom said to her.

"Everyone, I have an announcement to make," Kristen replies and they listen, "I am not doing the chemotherapy anymore. I am not afraid to die," she explains and they gasp.

"Sweetheart, we want you to have a normal life," her dad said.

"My life was never normal," Kristen replies, "I don't want anymore treatments, I just want to live until my dying breath."

Elsewhere, Krampus listens to Kristen's words and tears flow down his cheeks. It was the first time in along time that he met someone who was just as brave as Ishild.

"Meinrad," a voice said from behind him. He turns to see Saint Nicholas and he appeared to be happy. "You have done well this year," he said, "And as a reward, I will summon Ishild's spirit to visit you for the rest of this month."

Meinrad' heart stops beating for a minute, he could not believe his ears. "Sir, are you serious?" he asks and Saint Nicholas chuckles. He raises his staff and a bright light appears before them.

Something emerges out of the light, it was Ishild! "Ishild!" Meinrad cries out and the two share an embrace. They look into each other's eyes and they kissed.

"Spend you time wisely with her," Saint Nicholas said and Meinrad smiles at him.

"Thank you," he and Ishild reply and the saint disappears before them. The two lovers embrace, again, and the dwarfs cheer and gather around the two. There was time for them to have their own celebration.

"Ishild, I love you," Meinrad said to her.

"I know, and I love you," Ishild replies and they kiss once more.

* * *

 **From the author: Happy Holidays to my fellow readers!**


	20. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19**

 ***Warning: This chapter contains lemon. Rated M***

Meinrad steers his sleigh and looks down upon the city of Berlin just below. He looks at Ishild, the wind was blowing her blonde hair and she looks at the bright lights.

"So much has changed in one-thousand years," she said to Meinrad. "Where are we heading to?" she asks him.

"A boy has lost his faith in the Christmas spirit and vows to hate the holiday for all time," Meinrad explains.

"How dreadful," Ishild said and adds, "So you punish them, how?"

"For those who lost the spirit, I punish them with either coal in their stockings or thwack them with birch branches. Others who have a heart of greed, I take them to Hell, like the twins who stole Kristen's money," Meinrad replies and Ishild nods.

She did look lovely in her lavish green dress and her hair was neatly done in a braided bun.

Meinrad then has his mounts, demonic looking goats turn and they go down towards a house just outside the city.

A blizzard was blowing fiercely and Meinrad jumps out of his sleigh. Ishild follows him, but he says, "Stay here, this won't take long."

"No, I want to come with you, maybe this boy needs someone to talk to," she replies, but Meinrad shakes his head.

The dwarfs jump out of the sleigh and one by one, they went down the chimney. "Talking is not what I do. Children need to be reminded of what Christmas means. Don't worry so much though, they will think it was all a dream," Meinrad said to Ishild.

Just then, they hear screaming and they see someone running out of the house and down the street.

Meinrad gestures for Ishild to get on his back. She does so and Meinrad leaps from roof to roof, catching up to the person. The chains and bells rattle with every leap.

The person, a young boy stops at a dead-end and turns to see the dwarfs. Meinrad jumps in front of the boy and he stares at the creature.

"You're Krampus!" he cries out in German and he falls to his knees, "I'm sorry! I will not hate Christmas! I promise!"

Meinrad snorts and pulls out a bunch of birch branches. Ishild, however, stands in front of him and says, "He said he is sorry. Show him mercy."

The dwarfs laugh and one shouts, "We never show mercy!"

Ishild looks at Meinrad with pleading eyes, but she saw that his eyes were blood red instead of their moonlit yellow.

"Meinrad please!" she pleads, but he moves forward and moves her aside. "Stop!" she cries out, tugging on his arm.

Then, Meinrad pushes her away and she stares at him in shock. She watches as Meinrad grabs the boy and forces him down.

 _TWHACK! THWACK! THWACK!_

The birch branches hit the boy's bottom and he cries out. The beating did not last long and Meinrad forces the boy to his feet.

He looks at the boy and then pulls out a bauble with the inscription 'Gruss Vom Krampus'. He gives it to the boy and he takes it.

Suddenly, something pulls the boy under the snow and he was gone. "What did you do to him?!" Ishild cries out and Meinrad's eyes return to normal.

He sees her on the ground and that's when he realized something. "I...I'm sorry," he said to her.

"That was not you, I know it wasn't," Ishild replies and stands to her feet. Meinrad scurries away from her when she walks up to him.

"Whenever I punish children, I can't control my body, that was part of the contract set by Lucifer," Meinrad said to her.

"Yes, I know, and it was not your fault. You were grieving and I understand grief. When my mother died, I asked God many times why he took her," Ishild replies and caresses his cheek.

"Your death was different, you were murdered by your own brother. That set me off, I wanted him to pay for my mistakes, and in the end, I ended up being a fool," Meinrad said and Ishild places her other hand on his other cheek.

"Lucifer is much like Gerlach, both are cruel tricksters," she replies and hugs him.

Meinrad's heart beats fast and he holds her. Ever since Ishild came into his life, he wanted her, but he couldn't because of his beastly appearance. However, Ishild didn't care for his features, and they look into each other's eyes.

Meinrad looks at his minions and they didn't utter a word. "Go on, be yourselves, I will not stop you," he said to them.

They laugh and then disappeared into the snowy night. Then, Meinrad holds Ishild tight, and he leaps into the air.

He lands close to his sleigh and loosens his hold on Ishild. "Meinrad, what happened to the boy?" she asks.

"He's back in his bed and when he wakes up, he'll think it was all a dream. However, that bauble will remind him of the punishment he received and if he misbehaves, again, I won't be as merciful as before," Meinrad replies and moves her toward the sleigh.

Both their breathing became labored and their breaths froze in the cold air. "I want you, Ishild," Meinrad whispers into her ear, "Even when you died, I still wanted you."

"Yes, I know," she replies and they kiss. It became passionate and lucious and they wanted more.

Meinrad hoists Ishild into his arms and takes her into his sleigh. He leans in toward her neck and his long tongue licks it, feeling the pulse in the veins.

They kissed, again, and this time, it was fierce. Meinrad's tongue enters Ishild's mouth and it dances with hers.

He places a claw on her back and presses her in, making it hard for her to break free. His other claw goes down from her chest towards her womanhood.

"Let me touch you," Meinrad said after breaking the kiss, "Only a touch."

She permits him and he slid his claw through the rim of her dress and up between her legs. He cups her and Ishild begins to moan while they kissed.

Meinrad carasses her wet opening, while licking her neck. "Meinrad," she moans and his tongue slithers down her chest.

He continues to carass it and she releases more of her juices. He breathes out frosted breaths, he wanted to be inside her, and he looks into her blue eyes.

"I want...I want you, Ishild. Let me go inside you, please," Meinrad pants and Ishild touches his cheek.

"I have been waiting for you to say that," she replies and pulls up her dress. Meinrad lays her down on the seat, and looks down on her.

He moves his robe, but doesn't take it off, he wasn't sure how she would react to his body.

Ishild looks up into his yellow eyes, he was enormous compared to her, but she didn't care.

"Please," Ishild said and Meinrad gives a gentle thrust into her. He had to be gentle, he was sure he would hurt her badly if he gave it all of his strength.

Meinrad continues to gently move inside her and releases a brust of hot air. "Ishild," he said and he thrusts even deeper.

Then, they felt the climax coming, "No...please...not now..." Ishild pleads, but it was no use. Meinrad goes deeper and at the last second, he roars.

They pant heavily and Meinrad removes himself, but he takes her into his embrace. "I love you Ishild," he said into her ear and his tongue licks her lobe.

"And I love you Meinrad," she replies and kisses him once more.

"I don't want you to go, stay with me for the rest of my servitude," Meinrad said.

"I wish it were possible, but Saint Nicholas tends to keep his word. If you have gone through over one-thousand years, I am sure you can go through another one-thousand," Ishild replies and caresses his cheek.

"It will feel like an eternity," he said and she nods. Ishild then lowers her head to his chest and listens to his beating heart.

"You have a strong heart," Ishild whispers and Meinrad places a claw on her head and caresses her soft blonde hair.

Just then, they hear laughter, and they see the dwarfs returning from their night of mischief.

"Damn," Meinrad curses and the two straighten themselves up. Then, he sniffs the air, and Ishild was sure that there was another child somewhere that needed to be punished.

They notice the dwarfs, some were wobbling on their feet, and others bleched. "You were drinking, weren't you?" Ishild asks and the dwarfs nodded.

"Best...drinks...we had...in years," one dwarf said, trying to control his hiccups.

Meinrad snorts out a frosted breath and gestures them to get into the sleigh. They do so and Meinrad cracks his whip, and the demonic goats went into a run. They went off into the sky and disappeared into the raging blizzard.

* * *

 **From the author: I forgot to mention that I will move on with this with a few more chapters. So, sex with Krampus must be exciting, and that makes Ishild a lucky woman.**

 **I'll be back with more! Please leave reviews!**


	21. Chapter 20

**Chapter 20**

Throughout the Christmas holiday, Meinrad and Ishild traveled around Europe in the sleigh. Ishild loved the new sights and sounds she experienced with Meinrad. They stopped to see fireworks explode over Vienna on Christmas Day.

They also witnessed a Christmas parade in a village where men were dressed as Saint Nicholas or Krampus. Ishild chuckled under her breath when she saw the numerous Krampuses. "They look ridiculous, they look like your goats," she said to Meinrad.

"Well, I do look like a goat," he points out and Ishild blushes in shame.

"I'm sorry," she replies, but Meinrad holds her tight in his arms. They then crossed the ocean to North America, as Ishild had never seen the ocean before and the lands beyond her mountain home. There were pockets of German communities where the people believed in Krampus and the creature was becoming a popular holiday icon in American culture.

"Tis a strange land," Ishild said to Meinrad when they stopped in the city of New York. She had never seen skyscrapers that reached the heavens, but they were unusual to her. In North America, the two of them and the dwarfs punished only a few of the children, but they only punished the ones who believed in Krampus. North America was a melting pot of cultures and Alpine culture was one of them.

Afterward, they returned to Europe, as it was now nearing the end of the holiday and the New Year was fast approaching.

"I don't want you to go," Meinrad said when they were in the forest of Salzburg, where they first met.

She looks around the frozen landscape, taking in the familiar sight of her beloved sanctuary. "I know, but in 900 years we will be together," Ishild replies, but he holds her tight in his arms.

"I don't want to wait for 900 years, I want you to stay with me forever," Meinrad said and some of the dwarfs begin to sniffle, trying to control their emotions.

Ishild embraces Meinrad and hides her teary face in his hairy neck. "I want to stay with you forever, too, but..." she trails off when they hear the tolling of a church bell. It rang eleven times, it was 11 o'clock at night. In an hour, the New Year will toll and Ishild will return to the afterlife.

"Ishild," Meinrad whispers his love's name, "I love you so much." Ishild tightens her embrace and more tears fall from her eyes.

"I have an idea," Helmold said, "Why don't you two run away? Hide from Saint Nicholas, he will probably give up on both of you."

Everyone looks at the dwarf and some of them sneer. "It is a terrible idea, Saint Nicholas will find them in no time," Runa replies and the other dwarfs nodded.

"I have something else in mind," Hartwig said and they look at him. He takes out two gold rings and hands them to Ishild and Meinrad. "It is a silly idea, but I thought you two get married. The rings will remind you of one another, that way you will remember the good memories," Hartwig explains and the two look at him in surprise.

Ishild's face turns a soft pink and she looks up at Meinrad. "I think it's a splendid idea," she said and Meinrad nods.

"What is Saint Nicholas' other name? Santa Claus? He is said to have a wife. Krampus should have one, too," Runa replies and Ishild gives a smile and takes Meinrad's clawed hand.

"What do you think? I am actually at a loss for words. As Saint Nicholas said, our love is stronger than our hate towards the many evils in this world," Ishild said to Meinrad.

"Yes Ishild, I want this, I want to remember the times we had together and you being my wife will make me the happiest being in the world," Meinrad replies and they share a kiss.

Then, a bright light appears above them and Meinrad sees the silhouette of Saint Nicholas. He looks at the two and Meinrad holds Ishild tight in his embrace. "It is not time yet, is it?" he asks his counterpart.

"Indeed, it is not, but I advise you two to hurry, the midnight toll is fast approaching and a wedding ceremony takes a lot of time," the saint insists and they hear the tolling of the bells, but they were playing a melody, instead of ringing the hour.

"Saint Nicholas, would you do the honors and marry us?" Ishild asks and the blue-eyed saint chuckles.

"It would be my pleasure," he replies and the dwarfs gather around the couple. The saint begins to ceremony, his holy light illuminated the forest, and it shined bright. Ishild and Meinrad held hands the entire time, refusing to let go.

They then exchange rings and it was official for both of them. They shared a kiss, but then, the church bells began to toll the hour and fireworks explode, the New Year had arrived.

"I'm sorry to say this, but it's time," Saint Nicholas said to the two.

"NO!" Meinrad cries out and holds Ishild tight. "I don't want her to go!" he adds and begins to sob. Ishild and the dwarfs began to cry, too and the dwarfs gather around them.

"Meinrad, do not be sad, I'll always be near," Ishild said, wiping away his tears. She leans in to whisper, "I'll persuade Nicholas to let me visit you every Christmas." Meinrad gives his best smile and nods.

"You will see her in your dreams while you sleep," the saint informs the creature. Meinrad gives Ishild one last kiss, just as the bells reached the tenth toll.

"I love you so much Meinrad," Ishild said to him and she joins Saint Nicholas, her hand releasing Meinrad's.

"I will always love you Ishild," he replies and watches them go.

Ishild and the saint vanish in the holy light and they were gone. Meinrad looks at his ring on his finger and rubs it. It was as if by magic, the memories of him with Ishild over a thousand years ago appear in his mind. Hartwig was right, the ring did remind Meinrad of the good times he had with his love.

Ishild would remain the only person he would truly love for all eternity. Meinrad and his dwarfs then return to their hideaway, preparing themselves to hibernate and be ready for next Christmas.

Meinrad shuts his eyes, he was tired, but he was ready to dream. In at least 900 years, he would be reunited with Ishild in Heaven, and his task with Saint Nicholas would be complete.

Right now, however, he wanted to dream of her and his wish was granted. Outside, the wind howled as the snow blanketed the forest, and then, a blissful silence fell upon the earth once again.

* * *

 **From the author: Hello my fellow readers, I am sorry for not updating. I went on vacation and when I got back, I got real sick, so I had no energy to do anything, except sleep.**

 **Anyway, it is very sad that Meinrad's time with Ishild is over for now, but at least he will see her in his dreams.**

 **A reviewer asked if I am following the movie. I will not as I have not seen it, but I wanted to, mostly because it is my favorite piece of folklore. However, as I mentioned in the beginning, I have a feeling that the movie did not accurately describe the legend.**

 **I think I will do one more chapter and then the epilogue, still have not decided yet. Thank you for your patience and see you around!**


	22. Chapter 21

***Note: Much of the story will be in italics, which means that Meinrad is dreaming.***

 **Chapter 21**

 _Meinrad finds himself in a snow-covered meadow and while the sky was clear, there was no moon or any stars shining in the sky. Meinrad had good night vision, but his strong sense of smell also helped him around._

 _It was awfully quiet, but then, the howling of wolves filled the night. However, Meinrad was puzzled by these types of howls, they sounded more human than animal._

 _He listens hard to the sounds and follows them, passing over a hill. He then sees a light in the distance and the howling was growing louder. When Meinrad got closer, he realized it was a hut, and the howling was actually a woman screaming._

 _Then, Meinrad smelled blood in the air and he quietly walks up to the hut. The woman had stopped screaming, but then a man began to cry out in horror. "What is this?!" he shrieks and Meinrad looks through the window._

 _He heard a baby crying, but Meinrad sees the infant on the floor. "A monster!" the man shouts. Meinrad looks closely at the infant, it had cloven hooves for feet, tiny horns had sprouted on the side of its head, and it was covered in black hair. The infant was him!_

 _"Meinrad?" a female voice said and he jumps in surprise. To his shock, it was Ishild, but the shock turned to relief, and he embraces her._

 _"Kill it," they heard the woman in the hut say. "Take it and kill it." The two of them watch as the man,_ _presumably_ _Meinrad's father wrap the infant creature in a bundle and hurries out of the hut._

 _Meinrad and Ishild follow the man towards the dark woods, while the infant cried, but the man places a hand over the baby's mouth. Ishild then stops when she notices a shape in the grass. It was a woman, probably middle aged with blonde hair. She wore a dark cloak and she looked to be spying on the man. Ishild watches the woman carefully sneak and watch the man._

 _The man stops at a stream and Ishild's heart stops beating. The man lowers the bundle in the water and the infant continued to cry. Ishild sees the woman take a twig and snap it. The man looks around in a panic._

 _The woman snaps more twigs and Ishild suspected she was trying to save the infant by pretending to be a forest animal. "It'll drown or a wolf will eat it," the man said and runs off._

 _Ishild and Meinrad watch the woman rush towards the infant and she takes it out of the water. She removes the wet blanket off of the infant and wraps it in her cloak, while looking at the beastly looking baby._

 _Ishild looks at the woman's face, there was something familiar about her. "Why would he do that to you?" the woman asks the infant Meinrad. A shock courses through Ishild's body, she recognized the voice._

 _"Oda?" she said and Meinrad looks at her. "She is our storyteller!" Ishild exclaims, but the young Oda didn't seem to hear her. Oda comforts the infant Meinrad and he calms down._

 _Oda speaks to the infant Meinrad, "Little one, I know you have a beautiful soul, and I know you are here on this earth for a reason. Now, I must find you a family who would not ridicule you."_

 _They watch her as she walks deep into the forest, while carrying the infant. It was awfully dark, but the full-grown Meinrad helped guide Ishild and they follow Oda. It felt like hours, but then, they notice a light in the distance._

 _They then hear music and chattering. Meinrad sniffs the air, "It's the dwarf community," he said to Ishild. Oda walks toward the dwarf village and they follow. Once they see the dwarfs, the folks had stopped playing and look at Oda._

 _"A human!" one cries out and they scatter._

 _"Please!" Oda calls out, "This infant needs help, he needs a mother. Please, show pity, his parents abandoned him," she explains and the dwarfs stop to see the baby. They took one look and then, a dwarf with blonde hair takes the baby into in her embrace._

 _"Runa," Ishild said in a whisper when she recognized the young aged female dwarf. Runa feeds the infant and her husband, Hartwig embraces them._

 _Ishild then sees Oda leaving the dwarf village and Ishild was curious as to where she was going. Ishild, however, looks back at the dwarf couple and their friends. "What should we name him?" Hartwig asks his wife._

 _"He deserves a good name," Runa replies._

 _"How about Meinrad?" a male voice asks and Ishild sees a young Helmold. "I believe he will be big and strong when he grows up."_

 _All the dwarfs nodded in agreement and Ishild and the full grown Meinrad leave the village. They follow Oda's footprints that lead away from the dwarf community and they caught up to her._

 _They came out of the winter forest and Ishild stops to see a village just beyond the meadow. It was small, but it appeared to be expanding. "That's my village," Ishild said to Meinrad._

 _They then notice Oda running up to a man, a young Chief Randulf. "Chief, I have horrifying news," she said to him, "Theotman and his wife, they had their baby, but they killed it. I saw Theotman drown the poor infant in the stream."_

 _"Theotman?" Ishild repeats the name, but she could not recollect anyone in her village with that name._

 _"I knew this would happen! That woman is so selfish and vain! They must be punished! Bring them here!" the young Chief Randulf orders the guards. The guards were joined by other men in the village and they leave._

 _Some time later, they returned with the couple, both were bound and gagged. "Chief, they claimed that the infant was born a monster," a guard said. The couple was crying as if pleading with the chief.  
_

 _Chief Randulf looks at Oda and asks, "Did you see the infant?"_

 _"I did, but he looked healthy and beautiful, even in death. I couldn't bear to leave him exposed, so I buried him," Oda replies, her eyes filled with tears. The couple then began to scream, but they were muffled by the gags._

 _"Enough, both of you! You killed an innocent baby! Therefore, you must be punished! Chop off their heads!" the chief orders and the guards drag the two towards the execution block._

 _Ishild and Meinrad watch as Theotman and his wife were executed. "Oda," Meinrad said to himself, "She...she saved my life."_

 _"And she spent the rest of her life protecting you by sharing that story," Ishild replies and she looks at the young Oda. "And she taught my mother about compassion and showing mercy," she adds._

 _"And your mother taught you," Meinrad said and sits down on the ground. Then, they realize that the young Oda was staring at them._

 _"Do not be alarmed," she said and they remain still. "I wanted to show you this, so you would understand what I had to do. Theotman was a good man, respected by the villagers, but his wife Linza was very foolish. She had no love in her heart and she taunted God when she was pregnant," Oda explained to them._

 _"Who was Linza?" Ishild asks Oda._

 _"She was the chief's wife's sister," Oda replies and Ishild's face turns white and tightens her grip on Meinrad's hand. "Linza was betrothed to the young chief, but when he saw how vain and arrogant she was, he broke off the engagement and married her sister, Hildegard. Linza never forgave them and the chief had her live beyond the village._

 _"Theotman took pity on Linza and married her, but she never loved him. When I told the chief about them killing you, I knew that he would not want a murderer for a sister-in-law. The blood of a dead newborn would stain his reputation, not just Linza's. So, both Linza's and Theotman's names and memories were erased from the village. I am sorry to show you this," Oda explains to them._

 _"No," Meinrad replies, "I am grateful that you did." He looks at Ishild and she holds him in her embrace. Oda then points to the body of Linza and they notice a black mist seeping out of her._

 _"What is that?" Ishild asks and they watch as the black mist hovers over the villagers and vanish._

 _"That was Linza's soul, but Lucifer had stained it. He looks for victims to feed them all evils, such as arrogance, greed, and wrath," Oda answers and Ishild looks down at the ground._

 _"He did the same to my brother," Ishild said and tightens her hand into a fist._

 _"I still want to show something, eighteen years after," Oda said and the vision changes. Oda had aged dramatically and so did the village. The now old Oda points to a young girl, wearing a cloak._

 _"That's me," Ishild said in a whisper and they follow her to the meadow. The young Ishild sits and waits for something. "When I heard the story about you, I wanted to see if it was true," Ishild said to Meinrad. She then looks to see her young self get up to leave, but then, they see a wolf._

 _The young girl runs away, the wolf was chasing her, but then, a figure catches the wolf. "I caught that wolf," Meinrad said and Ishild looks at him in surprise. "I saved you that night," he adds. They look at the young Meinrad, who appeared no different than the grown version of him._

 _"Ishild was natural curious at that age and I knew when I told the story about you, she would want to go look for you. I was not expecting a wolf to go after her that night, but you did save her. You didn't realize it," Oda explains to them._

 _"Wait, you knew that I would go looking for Meinrad that night?" Ishild asks and Oda nods, "And ten years later?" Ishild adds and Oda nods, again._

 _"In a way, I brought you two together," the old woman replies, "But, like all trials in life, Lucifer taunts those who have compassion towards others. Meinrad, I am afraid that once this dream is over, you will be tested by Lucifer. He will try to break you, crush you with everything he has, but as long as you have love in your heart, you will succeed."_

 _Meinrad stares at the old storyteller and his heart beats faster. Ishild calms him, but he was still afraid of the upcoming test. "What of Saint Nicholas? Will he help Meinrad?" Ishild asks._

 _"No, Saint Nicholas has allowed Lucifer to taunt Meinrad, but just this once. If you succeed, Lucifer will not test you for the remainder of your servitude," Oda informs Meinrad and she turns to leave, but then adds, "And I am afraid that Ishild cannot provide comfort during the test."_

 _Ishild hugs Meinrad and they held on to each for a long time. "I am not afraid, Lucifer cannot beat me," Meinrad said to her._

 _"I don't want him to hurt you," Ishild replies, but he chuckles._

 _"He gave me immortality, so I will be immune to injuries," he said, but that did not help calm Ishild's nerves._

 _"He can take it away," she replies and she stands up to leave. "I am afraid that I am being called back to Heaven. I don't want to leave you," she adds, holding Meinrad's hands in hers._

 _Meinrad kisses her softly and releases her, "I will pass this test," he said and Ishild walks away from him and disappears._

Meinrad wakes up in surprise, he was back in his cave, and it was awfully cold. He stands up and walks out of the cave to see fresh snow falling. He looks around the forest, nothing was around, and he heard the rustling of twigs.

Meinrad's breath froze whenever he exhaled and he stares up at the gray sky. Snowflakes fell on his face and Meinrad looks through the tall trees, wondering what animal lurked beyond.

He inhales a deep breath and gives one last frosted exhale before returning to his cave. He lies down and shuts his eyes, "I am ready," he whispers and he falls asleep once more.

* * *

 **From the author: I would like to answer some of yasdnilgoth's questions: Meinrad is or was a member of the Baemi tribe until his parents abandoned him. Meinrad did age normally like a human until he was cursed. Meinrad was eighteen and Ishild was six and ten years later, he was twenty-eight and she was sixteen, so Meinrad was twelve years older than her.**

 **So, will Meinrad survive Lucifer's brutal test? Find out later.**


	23. Chapter 22

***Note: Much of this chapter will be in italics.* *Warning: There will be depictions of torture throughout.***

 **Chapter 22**

 _Meinrad knew his was dreaming, as his surroundings were dark as night, but he heard chattering. He takes a step forward and then another._ _Then, the scene changes to that of the snow-covered forest. Meinrad sniffs the air, but there was no scent in the air. He listens carefully and the chattering gets closer._

 _Suddenly, something grabs Meinrad and pulls him under the snow. Meinrad, however, grabs a root of a tree and pulls himself out of the ground._ _Just as he was climbing out, his claw touches something, a boot. Meinrad looks up to see Chief Randulf and he also notices the villagers, they surrounded him._

 _"Monster!" some of them shout and someone rattles chains. The villagers shout and scream at Meinrad. He felt a tinge of hatred towards them, they would never accept him as he was hideous. Even if his parents were part of the Baemi tribe, not one of the villagers would see him as one of their own._

 _He looks at each of them, the villagers had no mercy in their eyes, and then, they became dark like shadows._ _The shadows continue to shout at Meinrad and suddenly, the shadows jump on him, consuming him in total blackness._

 _Meinrad was surrounded by darkness and his night vision did not help. Suddenly, he felt a chain whip him across his chest._ _More chains whip him across his body, including his face. Blood flowed from a cut on his cheek and he heard laughter._

 _"Freak!" he heard Helmold shout and the dwarfs appear. They rattle the chains for dramatic effect and some of them whip the chains at Meinrad._

 _"Ugly!" "Pathetic!" "Beast!" some of them shout ridicules at Meinrad. He didn't understand; the dwarfs had accepted him when he was an infant as he was like them. Why were they hurting him? That was when he realized that this was part of Lucifer's test._

 _"None of you would hurt me," he said and that's when the dwarfs stop hitting him. Meinrad then charges at them, clawing at their faces._ _One by one, the dwarfs became shadows, and they scurry into the darkness._

 _However, the shadows return, but they form into a dark snake, and it coils around Meinrad. He struggles to catch his breath as it squeezes him, but he was able to stomp on its tail._

 _The snake releases a cry and it releases him. The snake scurries away from him, but it stares at Meinrad with blood-red eyes. He recognizes them as Lucifer's eyes and he shouts, "You are a coward, Lucifer!"_

 _That was when the snake became Lucifer and he stares at Meinrad. "A coward? I gave you immortality! How is that in any way cowardly?" the Devil asks._

 _"You stole my life!" Meinrad shouts back, but Lucifer just chuckles._

 _"May I remind you that Gerlach killed the love of your life and you wanted revenge. Now, I believe that Gerlach claimed that it wasn't his fault that he killed his sister. And let's not forget their father, he just watched his son kill Ishild. Now who is the coward?" Lucifer asks him and Meinrad felt confused._

 _He presses his palms to his ears, "Stop it!" he shouts at Lucifer. However, the Devil continues to laugh, mostly at Meinrad. Lucifer then disappears and his laughter stops._

 _When it was calm, Meinrad looks around. He was back in the forest, but he kept his eyes and ears open. The next thing he knew, a freak snowstorm arrived and the wind and snow were powerful._

 _Meinrad did not mind as he was used to such conditions. "What is this? Is that all you got?" Meinrad asks Lucifer, who was not there, but he knew he was watching._

 _Suddenly, a powerful wind gust hit Meinrad, sending him backward and he landed on his back. The snow came down in big chunks and Meinrad could not see as it was blinding._

 _It was then that Meinrad felt a stinging sensation all over his body and he realizes that the snow was eating his coat away! The snow was like acid and Meinrad hurries to find shelter, but the acid snow blinded him._

 _He shuts his eyes and runs aimlessly through the woods. He kept hitting or running into trees and the acid snow was agonizing as it ate away at Meinrad's exposed skin._

 _"Meinrad!" he heard his name being called. It was Ishild's voice and he follows it. Ishild had been watching Meinrad and she wanted to help, but Saint Nicholas silences her._

 _"This is Lucifer's test, you must not help Meinrad in any way," he reminds her._

 _"Meinrad can't find his way, I need to help!" Ishild replies, but the saint silences her and she had no voice. She began to cry and watches helplessly._

 _Meinrad didn't hear Ishild anymore and he knew that she was forced to remain silent. However, he did hear Lucifer, "If you can't take this, I say give up."_

 _"No," Meinrad simply replies and that was when the snow stops falling. Meinrad opens his eyes to see his clawed hands covered in sores and he touches his face, it was also covered in sores._

 _He was in pain, but he refuses to give in to Lucifer's torment. He then hears rushing water and he crawls toward the river as he had no strength in his legs._

 _Finally, he came upon the river and he merges in. The sores began to heal and Meinrad drenches himself with the cold water. "HELP!" he heard Ishild's voice, again, and she sounded close._

 _Meinrad raises himself up from the water and looks around, but Ishild was nowhere in sight. However, he notices a bow and a quiver of arrows at the shore. He takes them, touching the arrows, making sure they were real._

 _"Meinrad!" he heard Ishild, again, and her voice echoes throughout the forest. He notices a shape and he takes an arrow and fires. It was a shadow and it scurries away once it was hit by the arrow._

 _"AIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEE!" Meinrad heard screaming from all directions and the shadows return. They surround him and scream at him. Meinrad knew they were trying to break him by taking out his hearing._

 _He covers his ears, the screaming was horrific and deafening. He then takes aim with an arrow and fires at one shadow, but it screamed even more. Meinrad's eardrums were hurting and he was afraid that they would burst._

 _He looks at the shadows and sees one shadow that was not screaming. He takes aim and fires at it. The screaming ceased and the shadow falls down and the others scurry away from Meinrad._

 _Meinrad looks at the shadow and was shocked to see it manifest into Ishild. The memory of her dying floods back to him and he cries out in anguish. "No! Ishild!" he cries out to the sky._

 _He turns away from the body, trying to contain himself, but then, the body of Ishild transforms into Lucifer. "Have I finally broken you?" he asks Meinrad. He does not answer and instead, he looks up in the sky, as if in defeat._

 _"Tell me so," Lucifer said, but Meinrad does not answer. He knew that it was Lucifer, but he wanted to finish him, and he had a plan. Lucifer walks slowly toward Meinrad._

 _"Answer me you ugly cow-" Suddenly, Meinrad turns and fires an arrow at Lucifer's eye. The Devil screeches in pain and his hands flail around, looking around for Meinrad._

 _"You cheating bastard!" Lucifer shouts and stomps on the ground. That was when the whole world around them shatters like glass and it was dark as night. Lucifer looks at Meinrad with his one eye, but he fires another arrow at it. He missed and Lucifer reaches for him._

 _Meinrad dodges away from him. "No! Where are you?!" Lucifer shouts and he pulls the arrow out of his eye. "I'll finish you myself!" he angrily yells out, searching for Meinrad._

 _Suddenly, Meinrad charges at Lucifer, head-butting him and the Devil falls on his back. Saint Nicholas and Ishild watch in astonishment and the saint summons a light for Meinrad._

 _Meinrad sees the light and runs toward it. Suddenly, he felt something coil around his leg and he looks to see Lucifer's tail. "You dare to run from me?!" he shouts, but Meinrad kicks at his face, leaving a hoof-mark._

 _He continues to kick at him until Lucifer's tail loosens and Meinrad flees toward the light. Once he got closer, he realized that there was a door, and he shuts it behind him._

 _"NO!" he heard Lucifer shout and the Devil opens the door. Meinrad kicks at him, again, and deadbolts the door._

 _"Run Meinrad!" Saint Nicholas shouts, "And don't look back!" Meinrad obeys and runs up a slope, but it was icy and he slips. He regains his footing without looking back and he hurries toward the light._

 _Suddenly, something catches one of the chains on Meinrad and the force pulls him back toward the door. "NO!" he cries and struggles to break free. Just then, a figure rushes in and stomps on the hand that held onto the chain._

 _"Get up!" Ishild demands and Meinrad gets to his feet. They rush towards the end of the tunnel and they made it out and they were engulfed by bright light._

Meinrad awoke with a start and pants heavily. He looks to see the dwarfs surrounding him, they looked puzzled and shocked. "Meinrad, what happened?" Runa asks her adopted son.

He looks to see that he was back in his cave and he heard birds chirping outside, spring had arrived. "Just a nightmare," he simply replies. He knew that he passed Lucifer's test, but the Devil must be furious for it.

The dwarfs return to their dozing dreams, but Meinrad listens to the birds outside. Once again, Ishild saved his life and he was forever grateful. He shuts his eyes, again, and wanders off to sleep.

 _"Meinrad," he heard his name and he sees Ishild and Saint Nicholas. Ishild runs into his embrace and he holds her tight._

 _"You passed the test, you did not let the hatred consume you," Saint Nicholas said and Meinrad nods. "If you did surrender to Lucifer, you would've been his slave for eternity," the saint adds._

 _"I remember you saying that my love for Ishild is much stronger than my hate towards man," Meinrad replies and Ishild kisses him._

 _"True, and the love for your adopted family is also strong," the saint said, "And as a reward, you will spend the rest of your hibernation with Ishild until you awake and begin another year," he adds and then leaves them._

 _Meinrad holds Ishild tight in his arms. "It's over," she said and gently touches both sides of his face. "Lucifer will no longer taunt you," she adds. Meinrad lets the tears fall from his eyes and breathes in Ishild's scent._

 _"Ishild, can you show me the birds?" he asks and she smiles at him. He wanted to see the birds of spring as he had never seen any in a very long time. Then, their surroundings turned into the forest, only it was not covered in snow._

 _Instead, the trees and grass were a bright green and the sky was a bright blue. Meinrad looks to see numerous birds flying around and singing. Ishild takes Meinrad by the hand and she leads him, showing him the forest that was reawakening from its winter slumber._

* * *

 **From the author: Meinrad passed the test! A glorious time for him and Ishild! Lucifer is very cruel, but Meinrad outsmarted him and he refused to surrender. Just to let you know, love always prevails.**

 **I believe I will do just a few more chapters and then it will be complete! See you soon!**


	24. Chapter 23

***Note: The font will be normal, instead of italics, but Meinrad is still dreaming.***

 **Chapter 23**

Meinrad and Ishild lay on their backs to look up at the cloudless blue sky, watching the birds fly by. Meinrad inhales the sweet smell of spring. "I always admired spring," he said to Ishild.

"Me too," she replies and lifts herself up. Then, they hear a twig snap, and they turn to see a bear just further away from them. "It's a bear," she whispers and Meinrad looks at it.

Just then, they hear more noises and were astonished to see two bear cubs running to their mother. The two cubs play with the mother bear, but they stop when she sees Meinrad and Ishild.

She just looks at them and the cubs look at them, too. Meinrad stands up, staring at them with his moonlit yellow eyes. "Stay here," he orders Ishild and slowly walks over to the bear.

"Are you crazy?" she whispers back, but he ignores her. He stops a few feet away from the bears, but then, the cubs walk over to him. Meinrad holds out his claw and the cubs sniff at it.

Then, the mother bear growls at Meinrad, but he holds his ground, only he noticed that the bear was not growling at him. He hears Ishild, she sounded like she was breathing heavily.

"Ishild, be quiet," he warns, but her breathing did not stop.

"I can't," she replies and then, she throws up. The mother bear sniffs the air and steps back, she could smell the vomit, and it did smell awful. She gathers her cubs and walks away from them.

Meinrad exhales a sigh of relief, he was afraid the bear would attack Ishild, and he walks back to her. "Are you all right?" he asks and looks at the little pile of vomit. Ishild spits out whatever was left in her mouth.

"I'm sorry, I've been like this after the New Year," Ishild replies and stands to her feet. Meinrad feels her forehead, she had no fever, and she did look tired. He hoists her up into his arms. "What are you doing?" Ishild asks.

"I'm taking you to see Oda, maybe she knows what's going on with you," he replies and walks out of the forest. They find a lone hut in the meadow, which was Oda's place as she resided in the afterlife with Ishild.

They discover the old woman outside, tending to some needlework, and she looks up to see them. "Meinrad, what is wrong with her?" she asks.

"I was going to ask you," he replies and lays Ishild down. "She has no fever, but she said she's been vomiting for some time," he explains. Oda looks around Ishild and then takes her inside her hut.

"Stay out here," Oda orders Meinrad and he stays put.

Inside, Oda has Ishild lay down on her bed, and Oda examines her body. "How long have you been having these spells?" the wise old woman asks.

"Ever since the New Year," Ishild answers and then, Oda begins to laugh. "What is so funny?" Ishild asks, wondering if the old woman had lost her mind.

"Oh, child, I'm surprised you don't know your own body," Oda said, but Ishild was confused. "It is simple, you're with child," she adds and Ishild thought she was going to faint.

"Me? Pregnant?" she asks and Oda nods. Ishild knew some knowledge about pregnancy as she witnessed her mother's pregnancy with her brother, but she never thought it would cause so much agony.

"Look at your stomach," Oda said and shows a mirror. Ishild lifts up her dress to see her somewhat extended belly, but she barely noticed. "It will get bigger over time," Oda adds and then, Ishild lays down, again.

She wished she was happy, but she was really scared. She knew Meinrad was the father, but how would the baby turn out? Would it turn out be a normal human being or have Meinrad's appearance?

Ishild then shakes that thought of her mind, she did not care how this child would appear, she and Meinrad were going to love it. However, something did cross her mind; how would Meinrad react?

"How should I tell Meinrad?" she asks Oda. The old woman chuckles.

"Surprise him, tell him a little rascal hit you in the stomach," Oda answers, but Ishild did not want to tell Meinrad that. She knew that Meinrad would angry instead of surprised. He usually had a temper towards those who would hit Ishild.

"I'll try to think of something," Ishild replies and leaves the hut. Meinrad stands up to attention.

"Are you all right?" he asks.

"She will be fine, but just to warn you, she will be sick for some time. She does have something to tell you," Oda said and Ishild's face turns red.

Meinrad looks at Ishild with a questioning look. "I think you best tell him in private," Oda advises her and Ishild takes Meinrad by the hand and they leave. They return to the lush green forest and they stop.

They see a stag with a doe and they had a fawn. That gave Ishild an idea and takes Meinrad's hands. "Look at them," she said, pointing to the stag with his family. "How would you feel if we had a child?"

Meinrad looks at her with a confused look, but replies, "I would probably be the happiest being in the entire world." He looks back at the stag, who was staring back at Meinrad. The stag looked wise beyond his years and he leads his family away.

"I'm going to show you something, just promise me you will not be horrified," Ishild said and begins to lift up her dress. She features her belly that barely looked extended. Meinrad was confused as he had no idea what Ishild was trying to tell him.

He thinks hard and long, but then it hits him like a rock. "Could you...could you really...?" he stutters and Ishild begins to chuckle. He touches her stomach and he takes a long sniff of it. That was when an image of a child fills his mind.

Meinrad was not sure if he was going to pass out or fall down. "Oh my..." was all he could say before pulling Ishild into his embrace. "You have no idea how happy you just made me," he said to her and releases her. He then falls on his back and begins to laugh like a crazy person. Ishild joins in and they embraced and laugh like there was no tomorrow.

Meinrad knew he was sure things would different from now on and he wanted to prove that there was no barrier between him and his new family.

* * *

 **From the author: Surprise! Meinrad is going to be a father! *Laughs* I had this on my mind for quite a while and I think this was the perfect time. I am sure that both Ishild and Meinrad will make great parents.**

 **Stay tuned for more!**


	25. Chapter 24

***Note: There will be references to September 11, 2001 (A very tragic day that shook the world to its core)***

 **Chapter 24**

The months had passed rather quickly for both Meinrad and Ishild to count. Ishild's stomach grew bigger with each passing week and Meinrad would listen and feel the infant inside.

At times, he was worried that his child would turn out like him, but Ishild made him promise to love his child no matter its appearance. The dwarfs were finally brought into Meinrad's dream and they were ecstatic to see Ishild.

"The afterlife works in mysterious ways," Runa comments on Ishild's pregnancy. Meinrad, who was good at crafting in wood and fur, spent a lot of time making a crib and even made and stuffed a teddy bear. The dwarfs helped out in clearing a place for the crib.

"You are amazing," Ishild said to him when he finished the bear, "But why is this bear happy and wearing a bow?" she asks as she never seen a teddy bear.

"It's a teddy bear, children sleep with them. The first one was created in 1902 to honor the United States' president Theodore Roosevelt, but he actually loathed the nickname Teddy. The softer version was made in Germany a year later," Meinrad explains and Ishild caresses it.

Runa offered advise to Ishild on how to take care of herself and the baby. "Ishild, I never told Meinrad this, but I was pregnant once. Unfortunately, I lost the child in a miscarriage and when I saw Oda with Meinrad that night, I knew that he was meant to be my son," Runa explains to her.

Ishild took to long naps in the day-time and even asked for strange things to eat. Meinrad tended to her wishes, as he was her husband and a husband must honor a wife's wishes. There were times that Ishild would have mood swings and would sometimes lash out at Meinrad.

Both Oda and Runa assured that Ishild did not mean to hurt his feelings. After an episode, Ishild would apologize to Meinrad and he forgave her. "The last thing I want to do is to be angry at you," Ishild said to him and he would comfort her.

It was finally nearing the end of summer and Ishild's day was fast approaching. Oda checks on the progress and begins to think. "I say this child will be due at the end of September," she said to them.

"I hate to wait," Meinrad mutters, but Ishild insisted that he be patient.

A few days later, on a bright, clear morning, Meinrad heard the sounds of howling. He thought it was unusual for wolves to howl in the morning, but he then realizes that it was not howling at all.

He gently awakens Ishild from her slumber. "Do you hear that?" he asks and Ishild listens carefully. It became clear then, that the sounds were of horrific crying coming from the west.

"Ahhhhhhhhhh!" Meinrad cries out in pain, grabbing his chest. He collapses to the ground and pants heavily as the pain in his chest grew ten-fold.

"Meinrad, what's wrong?!" Ishild pleads and she felt his pulse. His heart was beating hard and fast. He claws at the ground and continues to pant heavily.

Ishild orders some of the dwarfs to find Oda, but they didn't have to look far. Her face featured grief and horror. "Oh, it is awful!" she cries and breaks down in tears.

"What is it? What is going on?" Ishild asks. Meinrad then screams in pain, again, and he covers his ears and Ishild was terrified of what was happening to him.

Finally, after a few minutes, the pain in Meinrad subsided, but he looked dazed. Ishild comes to his side and she sees the agony in his eyes.

"Murder..." he whispers to her, "Two giants...in New York...have fallen..." he pants and Ishild's mind flashes with images.

She sees two tall skyscrapers, smoke and fire coming out, and then they crumble to the ground. She then screams in horror as she realized what Meinrad was feeling.

"There is...more...I see..." Ishild said as her mind features more fire and smoke coming from a smaller building and from an open field.

"I see it, too," Meinrad replies and the dwarfs begin to cry out in misery. The cries from the west grew louder and it was then that the east joined in.

"Evil...evil has...committed a horrific crime," he adds through his tears. "Someone's father, mother, children, their lives have been taken too soon by evil," Meinrad said and Ishild buries her face and they begin to cry.

All through the day and into the evening, the cries from the west continued. Meinrad and Ishild listen to the cries the entire day.

"You will send them to Hell, those who committed these crimes," Ishild said to Meinrad, but he does not answer.

"He can't," Oda joins in and adds, "These people do not believe in the existence of Krampus, they are different from the people they murdered. God will punish them."

Just then, they hear shouts coming from both the east and west. They sounded angry, but they could not understand, as the shouts were in tongues they never heard before.

They listened, the strange tongues continued to shout, as if they were accusing someone. The shouts then turned to sadness, they had joined in with the cries from the west.

"Those people...they know who committed the crimes, but they are powerless to stop them," Oda said to them.

The child inside Ishild moved around in her womb and both she and Meinrad felt the movement. They knew their child was listening to the horrific screaming.

That night, the group made a makeshift memorial and lit candles. They listen to the bells of churches as they play a mournful tune.

"This will be a day that all of humanity will remember for all eternity," Meinrad said, "And so will we."

Weeks later, the world slowly recovered from the horrific attacks and Meinrad felt the pain in his heart subside slowly. His heart had ached for those who lost a father, mother, brother, sister, and child.

He did realize on that day, all of the world came together like a family.

It was nearing the end of the month of September and Ishild's due date was approaching.

On a chilly autumn morning, the sun had not risen yet, but Ishild was aroused by sheer pain in her back. The child was moving and she summons Oda and Runa.

"You're in labor, we best get you ready," Oda said. They laid her down on a makeshift bed made of straw in Oda's hut and that was when the pain increased.

Runa had shooed Meinrad away, "You will see them soon," she assured her son. All he could now was to be patient, which he despised greatly.

Meinrad walks a bit further away, not wanting to hear Ishild's screams of pain. Minutes passed and his impatience was getting the best of him, but he was also worried.

Hartwig joins his son, "You remind me of myself," he said, "I was always impatient with certain things, but life is about patience."

"I am not just impatient, what if the child turns out to be like me?" Meinrad asks, but Hartwig gives a frown.

"Remember Meinrad, you are love your child no matter what," he reminds him. Just as he finished, the cries of a baby filled the air.

The other dwarfs came running toward Meinrad, shouting, "It's a girl! It's a girl!"

Meinrad's worry had turned to relief and he rushes back toward the hut. Oda opens the door for him and he sees Ishild cradling the newborn infant, her face was red.

He sniffs the air, there was a new scent and he walks over to them. "She is lovely," Runa said, rubbing her eyes, as if she was trying to control her tears.

Meinrad walks over to Ishild and looks at his newborn daughter. She had perfect pink skin, with black hair on top of her head, her eyes were a hazel color, but to Meinrad's relief, she did not have cloven hooves for feet.

The baby looks at Meinrad with a curious eye, but then begins to fuss. "She's hungry," Oda said and Ishild lends her baby her breast.

She suckles for some time and then looks back at Meinrad. The next thing they hear was their daughter's laughter. Her tiny hands reach for her father and Meinrad looks at her curiously.

"Oh, she likes you," Ishild said and hands her over to him. Meinrad never held a baby before, but he takes his infant daughter in his arms and holds her close to his face.

Her soft baby hands touch his face in a curious gesture and Meinrad cradles her. "What will name her?" Hartwig asks the two.

"I refuse to name her Linza," Meinrad said, referring to the birth mother who abandoned him.

Ishild takes his hand into hers, "What about Leofflæd? She loves you already," she said and Meinrad liked that name.

"Leofflæd, our beloved," he said and the baby girl falls asleep, again.

"I say it's time for a celebration!" Helmold exclaims and all of the dwarfs rush out of the hut. Meinrad groans as the dwarfs became their mischievous selves, again.

However, he feel at ease and the pain in his heart had turned to joy. While there was much pain and suffering in the world, there was a flame that burned bright. Meinrad knew it was the flame of love and it would some day rage like a wild fire, consuming the world.

Meinrad thought hard; if many people came together in times of grief, then perhaps evil will be extinguished, but he knew that evil was like a snake.

It would slither up to its unsuspecting victims and drain the life out of them. "Lucifer, you know nothing of love. I may look hideous, but I am nothing like you," Meinrad said aloud. "If you dare harm my family, I'll try my best to kill you. However, I believe it will be impossible to destroy all evil, but as long as there is love, it will tie people together, and you can't break it."

Far from the hut, Lucifer had heard Meinrad's words and he snorts. Every since Meinrad passed his test, Lucifer was forbidden to go anywhere near him. Lucifer was still furious over Meinrad's success.

However, Lucifer was not finished with Meinrad. He would continue to taunt him, at least try to break him, and now that Meinrad had a child, it would be easy to do so.

Lucifer then summons a shadow-like snake. "I am forbidden to go near Meinrad, but I know you can taunt him for me," he said to it, "Do whatever you want with him."

The snake slithers away and Lucifer leaves, letting the dwarfs to celebrate.

* * *

 **From the author: Meinrad is a father! How exciting is that?! But I am terrible, Lucifer still wants to break him. Let's just hope Meinrad goes through the temptation.**

 **The name Leofflæd is Anglo-Saxon and it combines the words _leof_ "agreeable, dear, beloved" and **_**flæd**_ **"beauty". For the 9/11 reference, I wanted to feature what the characters thought of this horrific time in history. In the end, however, life renews and even new life begins.**

 **I do believe that miscarried babies do get a chance to be born in Heaven, hence the reason why Ishild became pregnant, despite being an angel.**

 **Looking forward to work on more of this! See you soon!**


	26. Chapter 25

**Chapter 25**

The month of September faded away and October arrived. On the first morning, Meinrad took a whiff of the crisp autumn air. The dwarfs drank and dance for hours following Leofflæd's birth. They were drunk and mischievous, but then Meinrad had enough of their humorous ways.

That morning, Meinrad shouts at them, "ATTENTION!" The dwarfs stood up and straightened themselves. Meinrad looks at each of them, much like an officer checking on his comrades. He snorts in their faces. "As much as I envy you for being carefree, I really don't appreciate your mischief this time. I let you play during the festivities of the twelfth month, but I believe this time is too much," he said to them.

"We're sorry," Helmold replies and then hiccups. The other dwarfs nodded.

"It is October and it is getting close to Christmas again. I must insist that all of you to never have a drop of alcohol until then, for my daughter's sake," Meinrad orders and they nod.

Meinrad sees Ishild with Leofflæd, who was just a day old. He joins them, the little baby stares up at her father, and laughs. He takes her in his arms and holds her up to his face to look into her hazel eyes.

"She looks...unusual," Meinrad said to Ishild. She chuckles and wraps a blanket around Leofflæd.

"How so? Like a little blob? All babies look like that when they're born," Ishild replies and Meinrad cradles his infant daughter. "I wonder what Christmas will be like without you around," Ishild adds.

"What do you mean?" Meinrad asks.

"I mean, you being gone to punish the naughty every Christmas or the whole month of December. You will be gone during that time and... Leofflæd will be growing up during that time," Ishild explains and Meinrad did feel his heart tear into pieces.

"I know it is tough, but Leofflæd will be asking where her father goes every Christmas. It would break her heart and mine and I am sure yours," Ishild said to Meinrad, his face looking at the ground.

"Would she at least forgive me?" he asks.

"I don't know, some children will forgive their fathers, but others will not. I have forgiven my father for-" Meinrad stomps on his hoof, he hated to hear of Gerhard.

"He let your brother abuse you!" he snarls, Leofflæd began to fuss.

"It was not his fault, when my mother died, his mind became fragile and he-" "He did nothing to save you!" Meinrad shouts angrily, causing Leofflæd to cry. Ishild grabs hold of his arm and holds it tight.

After a minute, Meinrad calms down. "I'm sorry," he said and he calms Leofflæd down.

He hands her over to Ishild and turns to leave. "Where are you going?" she asks.

"I want to be alone," he answers and walks away from the clearing. He wonders into the forest and out into the meadow, where he saw the surrounding trees painted in golds and reds.

He notices some crows flying overhead, winter was coming. Meinrad hated winter, other than being so dismal, it took him away from the ones he loved, and he didn't want to be alone.

Then, his ears pick up a sound, and he looks around. It sounded like a snake hissing, only louder and it sounded close.

Meinrad dared to look behind him and to his shock, a large black snake looks down on him.

It hisses at him and stares at him with its cold, yellow eyes. Meinrad snorts at it and stomps his hooves, he was ready for a fight with this taunting creature.

"Lucifer sent you, to do away with me. Well, come and get me, if you dare," Meinrad said to the snake.

Suddenly, its tail coils around Meinrad's leg and pulls him to his knees. It opens its mouth wide, but then, Meinrad sinks his teeth into its eye.

Black blood squirts out and Meinrad attacks the other eye, rendering the snake blind. The snake loosens its tail and Meinrad leaps out of its range.

"It can still smell you," Lucifer's voice said and Meinrad looks to see where the Devil was. The snake then strikes at Meinrad, but he moves away.

Meinrad roars at the snake, he had to get it far from the forest where his family was. The snake sniffs the air and follows him.

It was quick when it slithered, but Meinrad was much faster. He did, however, allowed the snake to catch up to him.

Meinrad then hears a waterfall and he realized he was trapped. Meinrad was sure the snake would survive a fall. He had to kill it.

That was when he felt something in his coat and he takes it out, it was a bow and a quiver of arrows.

These arrows looked unusual, the heads appeared to be made of gold and they shined. Meinrad did not have time to think, he pulls one out and takes aim.

That was when the memories of Ishild introducing him to the bow and arrows filled his mind.

He inhales deeply and exhales as the snake drew closer to him. The snake raises itself high and was prepared to strike when Meinrad lets his arrow fly.

The arrow pierces the snake's dark scaly skin and passes through its innards and out its back. The snake falls to the ground, dead at Meinrad's feet.

Meinrad releases a sigh of relief, it was over.

"AAAAIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" came a screech and Meinrad sees Lucifer just a few feet away.

"You-you-devil!" Lucifer shouts at him.

"Me? A devil? If I recall correctly, you taunt many innocent victims, and when things don't go your way, you never rest until those who taunt you are dead," Meinrad said to him, but Lucifer just stares at him.

"Now, if I see you anywhere near my family, I will shoot one of these arrows at you. I must warn you, God or Saint Nicholas blessed these arrows," Meinrad adds and Lucifer vanishes in a flash of fire.

The snake also vanishes in a cloud of ash, but then, a bright light appears in front of Meinrad.

Saint Nicholas stands in front with a smile on his face. "Well done Meinrad, Lucifer will never taunt you again," he said and then adds, "However, I must tell you, once December arrives, you will be away from your family."

Meinrad was afraid of this and says, "Then, I will not see my daughter on Christmas." Saint Nicholas nods and Meinrad looks down at the ground.

"I understand," Meinrad replies and turns to leave. He still had two months to spend with his family before returning to his duty.

However, he decided to make good of these two months, and he swore to himself that he would do so.

Meinrad returns to the clearing and Ishild rushes up to him. "Are you all right?" she asks.

"I am fine, where's Leofflæd?" he replies.

"Asleep in the hut, you were gone for over an hour," Ishild said and he nods.

"Ishild, in two months I will be returning to my duties. I've decided to make best of them and spend them with you and Leofflæd," Meinrad said and Ishild smiles. They went into the hut and watch over their sleeping child.

* * *

 **From the author: Meinrad has done it again! Good for him. In case you are wondering, Meinrad has 922 years left on his contract and then he will regain his soul.**

 **At that time, who knows what the holidays will be like. I like to use my imagination, so, we'll see.**

 **See you soon!**


	27. Chapter 26

**Chapter 26**

The month of October served as a recovering period for everyone following the horrific events in the previous month. Halloween had arrived and in the afterlife, Meinrad and Ishild, with their daughter and the dwarfs held their own celebration for the night of spooks.

The dwarfs promised to not overdue on their drinking and instead, some played with their instruments and others danced with Meinrad and Ishild. Runa and Oda took turns watching over Leofflæd.

Some of the dwarfs were being mischievous as usual, pulling harmless pranks on one another and scaring each other silly.

Meinrad frowns at this behavior, but Leofflæd seemed to be enjoying the dwarfs' crazy playfulness.

The celebrations ceased when midnight tolled and November arrived. It was nearing Christmas again and Meinrad feels dread, he didn't want to go back to the mortal world as it would mean missing Leofflæd's first Christmas.

"I say we have our own Christmas celebration," Helmold declares one morning, "It will be early, but at least Meinrad will not miss out on Leofflæd's first Christmas."

Meinrad and Ishild loved the idea and Meinrad prepared a special present for his daughter. Day and night, he worked hard on making it.

He made a musical box with a porcelian horse and rider. He modeled the rider after Ishild and the melody was of 'Silent Night'. The key was painted gold and he finished his finest work on the eve of Thanksgiving.

Meinrad tested it, it worked perfectly and he takes it into his hand and carries it all around.

The dwarfs had prepared a feast with big turkeys and the finest wines they ever made. Ishild, with Leofflæd strapped to her chest, was pulled out of the preparations and met with Meinrad.

He shows the music box to both of them. Ishild oohed at the sight of the magnificent creation and Leofflæd reaches for it. Meinrad turns the key and the box begins to play 'Silent Night'.

"Oh, Meinrad, you are a genius," Runa comments on her adoptive son's masterpiece.

Leofflæd smiles at her present and Meinrad says to Ishild, "Play it at night, it will give her good dreams. Pretend it is me singing to her."

Meinrad then ties a string around the key and slips it over Leofflæd's head. She cooes and plays at the key. The music box finishes its melody and it goes silent.

Then the festivities began. As before, there was eating, drinking, and dancing. "We should do this more often when we are here," Hartwig said to Runa, his wife.

Meinrad and Ishild danced for awhile, but Ishild noticed that something was troubling her husband. "What is wrong?" she asks.

He walks away from the dancing and so did Ishild, following Meinrad. He stops and stares at Ishild. "For the longest time, my heart feels heavy. It's not of love, but something else, almost like grief," he explains to her.

"How long have you felt this way?" Ishild asks, touching his face.

"All my life I believe, I should've told you this sooner, but I thought I would feel relief when I passed Lucifer's test or when Leofflæd was born. I still feel that grief, nothing seems to cure it," Meinrad explains to Ishild.

Ishild did not know what to think of Meinrad's situation. She experienced times when she felt at her lowest, even in the afterlife.

"I wish I had an answer, but I just don't," she replies and Meinrad exhales a breath.

Then, out of the blue, snow began to fall. This was actually normal as their home in Austria would have the first snowfall around this time.

Leofflæd was curious of the tiny white flakes and flails her arms around, wanting to catch one.

Then, a bell began to toll the midnight hour. "No!" Meinrad cries out, "I don't want to go back, not yet!"

He craddles his daughter in his arms and embraces Ishild. "Listen Meinrad, you will be gone for some time, but not forever," Ishild said, but Meinrad shakes his head.

The bell tolled three times already and Meinrad's image began to fade from the afterlife.

"We will be gone for at least 35 days," Helmold said before he went back to the mortal world.

"35 days, they will go by in a flash," Ishild said to Meinrad and he presses his hand to his eyes. Ishild then plays the music box one more time for him to listen.

The bell tolled another three, but Meinrad ignored it as the music box played wonderfully. Leofflæd then yawns and falls asleep in her father's arms. "I love you, my sweet," he said in her tiny ear.

He hands her over to Ishild and they share one last kiss before the final toll and Meinrad had returned to the mortal world.

()()()()()()()()()()()

Meinrad wakes up and stands to his feet. He thought he was still holding Leofflæd as it felt like it, but she was not there.

His heart was still heavy with the grief. What was this grief? He had no idea as he had everything he could wish for, Ishild as his wife and a daughter, but why was his hear heavy?

It was something Meinrad would have to find out someday, but right now, he and the dwarfs had to prepare for this year's Christmas.

* * *

 **From the author: I know it's short, but I want to finish this story while it is still winter. I honestly still believe that Christmas happened yesterday as it is still fresh in my mind.**

 **What is this grief Meinrad is feeling? You might have to figure it out yourself or wait until the very end. See you soon!**


	28. Chapter 27

**Chapter 27**

 _ **922 years later**_

Many more years passed for Meinrad and the entire world. So much had changed, but the hate was twice as strong as before. Meinrad never felt so much hate among the mortals. It was as if God gave up on the human race and let them run rampant like there was no top leader to tell them to stop.

Meinrad spent the following 922 years with his family in the afterlife, but he had to leave during the Christmas holiday. 800 years later, Ishild became pregnant again and had given birth to a baby boy in the summer, whom Meinrad named him Ásbjörn which means "god bear". It became clear shortly afterward that Ásbjörn was just as mischievous as the dwarfs.

Leofflæd was kind and was much like her mother. It was then that both Meinrad and Ishild realized that their children represented the children of the world, with Leofflæd as the spirit of goodness and Ásbjörn was the symbol of the terrible children.

Both Ásbjörn and Leofflæd did not age like normal children. Instead, they aged when they turned 100 years old. After 900 years, Leofflæd looked much like a nine-year old girl, while her brother was just a one-year old toddler.

The Christmas holiday had also changed dramatically. People had lost their faith and grew greedy and selfish, especially the children.

Meinrad, as Krampus had his work cut out for him. Instead of sending a few naughty children to Hell, he was sending over a thousand for their disobedience or their disloyalty for the holiday.

Through the years, his heart grew heavy with the grief and whenever he was in the mortal world, he felt like he was dying, bit by bit. It became clear that the people had lost their belief in Krampus and he had no choice, but to let them go without receiving any punishment. It was the Alpine community that remained loyal to the Christmas demon, or the Shadow of Saint Nicholas.

Whenever he came home, he felt like crying as he was sad for the mortals. "They had forgotten the meaning of Christmas," he said to Ishild one day. Ishild felt the same way and she did feel sorry for the mortals, too.

On this day, Christmas Eve in the year 2915, Meinrad and the dwarfs realized that the 2000 year servitude was going to expire at midnight. "2000 years, it certainly felt like 2000 years," Helmold said and he coughs a little. The dwarfs had grown old and their features had aged during the 2000 years.

Many of the dwarfs had fallen ill at this time and so did Meinrad. They did wonder why they were sick as they never fallen ill before. They did what they could to carry out the punishments to the naughty children, but they became weak and tired.

At first, they blamed the climate change as Austria no longer had snow during the winter time and the ice caps had melted completely, therefore much of the coasts had flooded. New York was one of the many coastal cities that fell victim to the flooding. Meinrad knew that it was not that. "The world is dying," he said to the dwarfs.

There were many wars that followed, many were failures and pointless battles. Meinrad and his family also witnessed a few revolutions that changed the fragile balance of the global economy.

It was nearing midnight and Meinrad and the dwarfs had overheard news that a sudden deep freeze was coming. It was the new ice age that threatened the world and it was going to be more deadly than the last.

Meinrad and the dwarfs had to reach their homestead in the Austrian forest as it was their wish to die in the cave. Just as they reached the edge of the forest, all of the demonic goats that served the sleigh had suddenly died.

Somewhere, a clock was chiming the coming hour of midnight and Meinrad and the dwarfs hurried towards their cave. One by one, the dwarfs fell and died, but many of the others carried their fallen comrades before they too expired.

Meinrad's mind was filled with memories of this forest as it was the place where he and Ishild first met. He catches sight of the cave and he and the remaining dwarfs ran as fast as they could.

"Oh my son!" Runa cries out. Meinrad looks to see that his adoptive mother and father had fallen. He carries them toward the cave.

"Look!" Helmold shouts and points to some trees. Meinrad saw what looked like a fog bank and the green grass and the trees froze in less than a second. It was the deep freeze, it had arrived. Snow began to fall in big chunks and a powerful wind hits Meinrad, it was dreadfully cold and his limbs felt like freezing.

He and the surviving dwarfs made it to the cave as the fog bank floods into it and the midnight toll chimes. Meinrad's heart beats fast and the world around him was shrouded in total cold darkness.

He watches the remaining die in front of him, including Runa and Hartwig. Meinrad then lies down and shuts his eyes. His heart beats for several seconds and then it stops.

()()()()()()()()()()()

Meinrad wakes up in complete darkness, but it puzzled him. He thought he was going to Heaven, but this place felt unwelcoming. He listens carefully, he could hear voices, but they were not of the dwarfs.

There was moaning and screaming and Meinrad takes a few steps forward. Then, the world around him was illuminated by fire and Meinrad looks around. This place was not Heaven, it smelled of brimstone and fire burned everywhere.

"No, no, no! This can't be right!" Meinrad exclaims in horror. This place was Hell and he heard the laughter of Lucifer.

"You thought you were going to Heaven? After all those years?" the Devil asks him and appears in front of Meinrad. Lucifer laughs a cold laugh and says, "As Saint Nicholas told you, your soul is bound to Hell and you will stay here forever!"

"No! Saint Nicholas said-" "Saint Nicholas said he cannot break the curse! And by the way, he tricked you! You don't get your soul back because it belongs to me! You can't trust anyone, not even a saint!" Lucifer replies and Meinrad roars in frustration.

"Meinrad!" he heard Ishild's voice and he turns to see his family. "Lucifer is lying! He is holding you here because you-" "Silence!" Lucifer shouts and his voice echoes all through Hell.

Then, out of nowhere, shadowy figures appear and they moaned. Meinrad looks at them and recognizes them as his victims he sent to Hell during Christmas, including Gerhard and Gerlach, Ishild's father and brother. He then notices a woman and a man that look oddly familiar.

It was Linza and Theomat, his mother and father. Linza did look beautiful, but her face showed no love or pity. The figures lurch forward, grabbing Meinrad and tearing at his coat and hair.

"Let go! Let go!" Leofflæd screams at them. The shadows did not listen and they continue their carnage. Meinrad's heart becomes heavier with grief, Lucifer had won after all.

"Enough!" Linza speaks to the shadows and they stop. She stares at Meinrad and he asks her, "Why are you doing this?"

Linza stares at him with coldness in her eyes and she begins to talk, "Once upon a time, there lived a girl who did everything to please her family. She had a lovely sister who had compassion in her heart. She was the talk of the village, while I, the older one was scuffed at for not being like her.

"One day, when our parents died, Chief Randulf took notice of me and asked to marry him. I was amazed and I believed that my sister would be out of my life forever. If only the chief did not notice my sister, then I would have been his wife, but instead Randulf broke off the engagement and married Hildegard.

"I was thrown out of the village, but Theomat took pity upon me and we married, but I hated him for not being rich and he lacked manliness. Then, one day, I discovered I was pregnant. Oh, I did not want children, so I said to God one night, 'I rather have the Devil's child' and it came true. Oh, such hideousness you had. How would the village think if they knew I had the Devil's child?

"I told Theomat to kill you, but he was foolish. He did not kill you, instead, he ran away like a fool, and Oda, that crazy old woman found you. I knew she was lying when she told the chief that the child I bore was dead," Linza said to everyone.

"Why?!" Ishild shouts at her, "Why do you hate your son?! What has he ever done to you?!"

Linza looks at her and answers, "After many years of hard work, trying to please my family, and what do I get in return? Banishment!"

The shadows grab at Meinrad and began to pull him toward an open pit of lava. Leofflæd screams, "Please, let him go!" They ignore her and they continue to pull Meinrad towards the pit.

Lucifer looks on, his face showed victory and he watches the shadows pull Meinrad towards the pit. Meinrad sees the pit, he knew that he was going to stay in Hell and suffer for eternity, like his victims.

There was one thing he had to do, before he was locked up. He looks at the faces of his victims and says, "I forgive you." Then, they stop dead in their tracks and let him go.

"What did you say?" Gerhard asks him and they stare at him.

"I forgive you for sending me to Hell. I made your life miserable for sending you here," Meinrad repeats and looks at Linza, his mother, "I forgive you for what you did to me."

"What is this nonsense?!" Lucifer shouts at him.

"It is not nonsense. You see, I may have grown hatred towards humanity when I was mortal, but with the dwarfs and Ishild, I grew to understand love and humility. That's what it is meant to be human, you forgive each other," Meinrad replies and the shadows step away from him. Some began to cry, but Meinrad's words fell on Lucifer's deaf ears.

"Humans are arrogant! They never understand the value of love and humility! All they care about is greed!" Lucifer shouts and turns to the shadows, "Don't just stand there! Kill him!"

However, the shadows look up to face Lucifer and in a flash, they grab him. "Stop it! Get off of me!" he shouts and tries to open his bat-like wings, but then, the shadows tare them to pieces.

Lucifer squeals in agony as the shadows push him towards the pit and then, all of them fell in. Meinrad and his family look down to the pit to see Lucifer, screaming in agony as the fire consumed him and the souls of Meinrad's victims.

The souls, however, did what they could to keep Lucifer in the pit and then, the Devil's body transformed into stone and it crumples and the wind blows away the dust.

Then, Meinrad passes out and falls onto his back. "Meinrad!" Ishild cries and their children cry out for him to wake up.

 _Meinrad finds himself in a white space, it was completely empty and he wondered where he was. He walks around, it was warm and bright, nothing like Hell._

 _"Meinrad," he hears a familiar voice and he notices Saint Nicholas. Meinrad does not move and the saint walks up to him. "You did it, you passed the test!" Saint Nicholas said._

 _"The test?" Meinrad asks._

 _"Oh, forgive me Meinrad, but you see, the real test was testing your humility. You forgave the souls of your victims and your parents for the evil they have done and for that, you have earned your place in Heaven with your family," Saint Nicholas said to him._

 _Meinrad lets the tears roll down his face, "So, the 2000 years of servitude is over for us?" he asks and Saint Nicholas nods. "Thank you, thank you for everything," Meinrad adds, "But what has happened to the mortal world?" he asks._

 _"It is in a new ice age, the surviving humans must learn from their mistakes, and I am afraid there will not be any more Krampus' nights or Christmases until the world has healed, which I believe it will be a long time," Saint Nicholas answers._

 _"I believe the humans will learn humility again, even if it takes many years," Meinrad said and the saint nods. "But, what of Lucifer?" he asks._

 _"Lucifer will no longer taunt humanity as he has ceased to exist, but the real test has began for the humans. Will they restore their humility and believe in me and you, again? Only God knows," Saint Nicholas answers._

 _"And what of Linza and Theomat? And the victims I sent to Hell?" Meinrad asks, again._

 _"They have found peace, but I am afraid they can't go to Heaven just yet, they still have much to learn after what you did for them._ _You best go and gather your family, the gates of Heaven are now open for you," he replies and he sends Meinrad back to his family._

"Papa!" Leofflæd cries out for her father and Ásbjörn cried too.

Just then, Meinrad wakes up and stands and his family jump on him. "Easy!" he demands and they back off.

He looks to see that he was back in the cave and the bodies of the dwarfs lay around him. The cave's opening had been frozen shut. Meinrad gathers his family in his arms and tells them what Saint Nicholas told him.

"So, it's over? For good?" Ásbjörn asks in his little boy voice.

"It is for now I believe, but now, we are being called to Heaven now. There's one thing I must tell all of you, I love you so much," Meinrad said to them and his children hug him, while Ishild shares a kiss with him.

They cuddle themselves beside Meinrad and they doze off before succumbing to death.

* * *

 **From the author: And now my fellow readers, get ready for the tear-jerking epilogue!**


	29. Epilogue

**Epilogue**

Meinrad and his family awoke to see that the world around them had changed. The forest floor was covered in snow and the sun was shining bright. It was nothing like the deep freeze, instead, this world was warm and bright.

They walk towards the meadow that was also covered in snow. "Look there," Ishild said, pointing to a village a little further away. It was her village and both their children ran towards it.

At the village, Helmold shouts, "I see them!" The dwarfs went crazy and they hurry to meet their beloved comrades.

A woman took notice of them and cries out, "Ishild!" It was Rosmunda, her mother, and Ishild's eyes grew wide when she saw her and Willahelm, her horse. Ishild and Meinrad rush to meet Rosmunda and mother and daughter embraced.

"Oh darling, you taught Meinrad well," Rosmunda said and Ishild greets her to Meinrad and their children.

"I couldn't have done it without you," Ishild replies to her mother.

A celebration was held that day, with plenty of dancing and music. Ishild and Meinrad, however, left the dancing to be alone, but they did their own dancing and they shared kisses under the moonlit sky.

At long last, Meinrad's trial was over and he had succeeded. His reward was earning his place in Heaven and his heart was relieved of the grief he felt all of his life. He was determined to teach his children humility and love, but for now, he wanted to spend the time he had to be with Ishild.

Both of them look up at the starry sky and hold each other, not wanting to let this moment pass before them.

 **THE END**

* * *

 **From the author: At long last, it is finished! I hope all of you enjoyed it! I want to thank my readers and reviewers for the lovely comments! I hope that my other stories will please you, including the ones that I will make in the future.**

 **Take care and see you soon!**


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